The Shining Beacon
by Conflict
Summary: Naruto enters the Remnant, and the world has a peculiar effect on his chakra. His memories are of a Hokage, a husband, and a father. His body is that of a teen. Thrust into a strange world and handicapped, Naruto's Will of Fire remains bright. His desire to protect leads him to a Huntsman academy.
1. Prologue: Falling Star (0:100)

**Disclaimer** : I don't own RWBY or Naruto. RWBY is the property of Rooster Teeth Productions. Naruto is the property of and Masashi Kishimoto. Neither are my intellectual property. There is no financial gain made from this will I seek any. This is for entertainment purposes only.

* * *

 **Prologue:** Falling Star

* * *

There is no wind on his face, but the pull on his body is unmistakable. The acceleration is slow, but he is falling.

He opens his eyes and stares down the golden, flickering flames of energy coating his body. The familiar sensation of the power coursing through him becomes alien. Panic creeps into him as he realizes why. The consciousness he has come to associate with the power is absent.

His fists clench, and his jaw tightens as he forces himself to push his concern down for later. He must assess his own situation first. He can't help anybody if he dies.

Beyond his feet lies the dark infinite of space speckled with shimmering stars. He tilts his head up and sees a blue sphere, littered with white and green, growing with each second. His grimace grows. He is falling towards the world.

Or **a** world _._

His brows furrow. He does not recognize the land masses on the globe. A smaller white orb catches his periphery. His heart skips. A shattered moon.

More questions form, but all halt when a faint glow appears over his head. The glow brightens and creates a cone around him, and his acceleration slows. He has hit the atmosphere.

He reorientates his body so he falls feet first, but his feet don't shift forward far enough. The new position has him parallel to the ground. The heat in front of him intensifies. He raises his arms to protect his face. Eyes widen as he sees golden wisps escaping his protective cloak. He peers down on his body and confirms the anomaly encompasses not just his arms but the whole cloak.

He turns his neck to follow the trail of evaporating energy, and his eyes widen. Behind him a yellow cloud forms from the vapors.

A thundering crack echoes behind him. He twists around just in time to see the golden cloud crackle and thunder into a chain of explosions. Each new bang comes faster and louder after the other.

Then the whole cloud explodes.

Brighter than the sun and louder than the epicenter of a thousand thunderclaps. The shock wave slams into him and knocks the air out of his lungs. Reflex steadies his tumbling form before his conscious thoughts can recover from disorientation.

The heat flaring around him steals his attention for the moment. With the cloak thinning fast, he will burn up on reentry. He taps into his own reserves for protection, but it too dissipates around him.

Another series of explosions sound off behind him. He turns and sees another glowing cloud, smaller than the first. Like the first, more explosions come until the whole cloud erupts. The shock wave ripples through the air but doesn't slam into him with the same force as the first.

The frigid winds scream into his ears as he falls faster and faster. He must slow down.

He stretches his arm in front of him and summons more of his energy from his core to his open palms. The wisps of energy escape faster the more he draws. He bites back his frustration at the fraction of power that remains in his hands. It should be enough.

With practiced ease, he moulds the energy into the desired nature. Without a word, he releases it forward, but no explosion of wind erupts forth to slow his fall. Instead, green smoke bursts from his hand. He rushes past his green cloud with his fall. A second attempt results in more green smoke.

The heat becomes more unbearable as his reserves drain. At this rate, he'll either burn in the sky or splatter into the ground.

A growl escapes his lips. Muscles tense as he pulls a larger pool from his reserves, but pain shatters his focus not a second later. His right arm screams in agony from the elbow down. The arm ruptures and spills a glowing liquid. More and more tears appear on its surface until the entire arm rips from him.

Before he can process it, the ground catches up to him and he crashes into the icy sea.

* * *

Half of Remnant stares at the golden cloud as it spirals into itself. Tomorrow a rainbow of dust will drizzle on Atlas and the north of Vale. For a week afterwards, winds sweep the phenomenon east before it fades away. The whole of Remnant will remember this as the moment a falling star turned night into blinding day.

Some call it a sign of good fortune. Others see it as a dark omen.

No one knows of the new arrival. None could predict the chain reaction set forth on that day.

One spark can incite hope and ignite the hearts of their weary souls. The embers of The Will of Fire brew a firestorm.

Uzumaki Naruto has entered Remnant.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

* * *

This is just a prologue for a fic that's been running around in my head for a while. Readers of **Enduring Legacy: Shadow of the Sun,** do not fret. This will not take away much from that. I intend to keep schedule. In fact, I'm hoping dabbling on this second fic will help keep me from burning out on that.

To those that liked this prologue, some bad news. Unlike my other fic, this will not have a set update schedule. I WILL complete this but don't expect regular updates. The current plan is for each chapter to be about 2,500 words long. That means this will likely be at best a monthly thing and at worst once every three to six months.

The whole fic will span RWBY's Volume 1 - 3 in the timeline, a little before and a little bit after.

The next chapter will be long before the start of RWBY's first episode in the timeline. I expect the chapter after that will line up with RWBY's entrance into Beacon.


	2. Chapter 1: A Hero's Entrance (0:100)

**Disclaimer** : I don't own RWBY or Naruto. RWBY is the property of Rooster Teeth Productions. Naruto is the property of and Masashi Kishimoto. Neither are my intellectual property. There is no financial gain made from this will I seek any. This is for entertainment purposes only.

* * *

 **Chapter 1:** A Hero's Entrance

* * *

Cold, wet, and exhausted, and he leaps in front a pack of black, bipedal wolves unarmed and one-armed. It's not the stupidest thing he's done, but he can't remember anything higher on the list at the moment.

He is pretty sure he should have died fifteen minutes ago. Every bone in his body should have broken when he slammed into the water, but he survived. He had hauled himself off the frigid water into colder snow. Or maybe that was hours ago. His memory of his trudge through the blinding white tundra is hazy at best. He doesn't remember making the tourniquet for his bleeding stump of his right arm for example.

A whimper behind him cuts through the mental fog. If leaping in to protect the family behind him makes him stupid, he doesn't want to be smart. He steadies himself and tightens his stance.

Every breath chills his lungs. He feels the full weight of his arm as he raises his fist forward. His knees quiver and his thighs strain as his left foot slides forward. He forces his eyes open and keeps his gaze darting from one beast to another as they prowl forward.

The muscular creatures' pitch-black fur contrasts with the snow and their white, bone-like masks. He hopes that means he can keep track of them despite his hindered state.

He wonders if they are born with the red markings decorating their masks. If those are tribal markings, it might be a sign of intelligence.

"Hey." He stares into the red eyes of the largest among the pack. "Leave." He wishes to say more, but his voice rasps and a cough escapes his lips.

They respond with snarls from between long, sharp teeth. Four stand on their hind legs while two stay on all fours. The largest growls then lunges at him with its long sharp claws.

He lunges between its arms with a strong jab to its chest. The attack sends the beast flying, and it slams into two of its companions.

He frowns as the beasts struggle to return to their feet. While simple, the punch should have killed the beast. Either the beast is tougher that he anticipated, or he has gotten much weaker than he realized.

He keeps his eyes on the beasts as he steps back towards the downed people behind him. Best not give the monsters an opportunity to slip past him to their victims.

A cloud escapes his lips with each breath.

The beasts circle left and right as they wait for the largest to recover. Their leader rises with a roar, and they charge as a group.

He darts to the right and uppercuts the closest beast by the chin. The strike lifts the beast off its feet. His right front kick knocks it back into another beast before it returns to the ground.

He sweeps his leg as he ducks under a claw. Before the rest can reach him, he rises and stomps down on the downed creature's neck.

He leaps back before the largest slams into his position. Snow and earth scatter into the air, and he dashes forward under the cover of debris. He leaps with a front kick to its chin then brings his heel down its crown as he falls.

A swipe from behind knocks him away, and he crashes next to the trio he is protecting. Their dark skin reminds him of Killer Bee though he returns his focus to the fight at hand. He'll check on their condition after at threat is gone.

The beasts hesitate as their strongest member remains motionless. He takes the opportunity to check on himself. His hand presses against his right rib, and his brows furrow in confusion. There is no blood or broken bones.

A growl steals his attention. The largest beast staggers to its feet and the remaining four circle it.

With how exhausted he is, he can't rely on brute force to take them down.

He adjusts his stance and leans back, resting most of his weight on this right foot. His arm rests on his torso. This new stance makes it harder to take the offense, but he needs every drop of energy he can save.

His eyes dart to the people in front of him almost hidden by the snow. He walks around them until he is between them and the beasts. Red eyes follow him as he walks forward and away from the people behind him. He doubles his pace to a brisk walk as the leader of the pack regains its bearings.

Confident their attention will not shift away from him and towards the people in the snow, he runs. The leader bays, and the werewolf-like creatures give chase. His legs burn as they plow through foot high snow. Frigid air rushes in and out of his lungs. His heart pounds against his chest, and his veins throb.

The corners of his lips tug upwards. Slight differences in speeds pull their formation into a straight line. His chances increase if they fight him one at a time instead of as a group.

He skids to a stop and reverses direction too fast for the beast to react. His fist crushes the beast's throat with the aid of the creature's own momentum. He uses the same momentum to help him rip off one of the beast's bone protrusions from its elbow.

He leaps aside and avoids a claw through his skull. His arm whips out and drives the spike in and out of its skull before his feet touch the ground.

He ignores the sore muscles of his arms as he repeats the action to the next masked beast.

The largest proves to be the smartest as it swipes outwards and forces him to dodge backwards and away. Its right claw swipes at him before he lands, but a quick kick to its palm sends him away from danger. A colored sheen passes along the length of his body as the claw nicks his ankle.

He lands rolling on the snow and skids to a stop. His legs strain to raise him from his crouching position. As he stands, his head feels weightless and unsteady.

Reflex makes him leap backwards before he can register the swipe. He winces upon landing. His fist presses against his chest, still holding the bone spike. Torn fabric and seeping blood lay under his fist.

For a moment, he wonders if he has lead the beast far enough away from its victims.

His feet move on their own and leaps over another swipe. He almost misses his opportunity. His mind snaps back to reality in time to drive his spike into the beast's head.

He lands on unsteady feet. He steps forward, and the last of his strength leaves him. He falls face first. Before darkness takes him, all he sees is white snow.

* * *

Sunlight streams through the window and onto his eyelids. He resists the urge to bury himself deeper into the thick blanket and pulls himself up. A yawn escapes him as he rubs the last remnants of sleep from his eyes. He turns to the side and settles his feet to the floor. The cold, wooden floor sends a shiver up his body. Footsteps from below tell him that at least two people are in the building.

Memories of yesterday flash through his mind. He glances at the bandaged stump of his right arm but shakes his head. The main priority is chakra, the result of combining physical energy and spiritual energy. Chakra is essential to even the most basic shinobi technique.

He raises his palm in front of him with a frown. It has been a long time since he has awoken and had his reserves this low. He gathers chakra to his palm. His brow rises as luminescent smoke seeps from his hand. Tiny sparks manifest and consume the vapors. The result confirms his worries from what he remembers of his entrance to this world.

Wood creaks beyond his room and alerts him of an approaching visitor. He takes the remaining time he has left before he is no longer alone to check on an idea. He closes his hand and gathers chakra to his fist. Wisps stream from his hand and fizzle out. He doubles his focus and the flow stops. Content with his discovery, he redistributes the chakra in his fist back into his core.

The footsteps pause behind the door to his room. His lips curl up into a mischievous smile.

"Come in."

He holds back a snicker as the person hesitates. An invitation to enter before just as a person is about to knock is a simple trick. He can't help himself when presented with an easy opportunity. Life as the Konoha's Hokage left little time for pranks. Despite being the most peaceful of the hidden villages, Konoha is a military force. If anything, 'most peaceful' meant more work for him as the village leader.

The door creaks open, and a young girl peeks her head through the small gap. "Hello." Her voice inaudible if not for his trained ears.

"Hey."

She squeaks and retreats behind the door.

"Come on. I'm not that scary, am I?" He thanks his luck they share the same language. This world might be the distant past or future, a different planet, or a different dimension.

"Sorry." She shuffles into the room. Her gaze on the floor, darting to him every once in a while. "I didn't expect you to be up yet." She has a strong accent, but she's not unintelligible to his ears.

He gives her a smile hoping to lessen her unease. "Few things keep me down for long. I'm stubborn like that." He hopes he isn't unintelligible to her.

She frowns though it comes across more as a pout. "Stubbornness has nothing to do with recovery."

He chuckles at her sudden change of mood.

"Hmph!" A raised chin and closed eyes punctuate her indignation. "I don't see what's so funny."

He represses his chuckles from blooming into laughter and settles for a wide smile. His stomach has other plans and lets loose a growl.

"Ah. I'm sorry."

"What? Don't be. My stomach's got a mind of its own."

"No. I mean I'm sorry we can't feed you until lunch. We didn't expect you'd be up yet, so we didn't prepare breakfast for you."

"Don't worry about it. I can wait." His stomach disagrees and lets loose a louder rumble.

"I'm sure we can find you a snack before I leave to shop for food. If you're well enough, you might want to get dressed while I get Mrs. Awrazh. Mrs. Awrazh gave you permission to use the clothes in the closet."

He looks down at his clothes, an oversized shirt and pants. A brief grimace flashes at the thought of someone other than Hinata, his wife, redressing him. He shakes his head at such childishness. "Where are my clothes?"

"I'm afraid we've disposed of them. They were far too damaged to repair."

"I understand." Though he wishes they would have kept them in case they held sentimental value.

"Will there be anything else?"

"Nah. You go get Oraji," he winces at his pronunciation, "and I'll get dressed."

If the girl noticed, she doesn't show it as she turns to leave.

"Wait."

She tilts her head to him. "Yes?"

"There were others in the snow. Are they all right?"

She spins her body to face him and gives him a slight bow. "I'm sorry, but I have no idea what you are talking about. I'll go ask Mrs. Awrazh, and if she doesn't know, I'll ask around when I leave to buy food. Anything else?"

He shakes his head. "No. Thanks anyway."

She nods before twirling back around and heads downstairs.

He heads to the closet but pauses halfway and notes the wooden floor, silent under his footsteps. While many might consider the subconscious application of stealth laudable, Jiraiya taught him better. The hermit was an insufferable pervert, but he was Konoha's spymaster for a reason. His advice of quiet footsteps when in stealth but not when in the open made sense. The unnatural silence draws attention. It also unnerves civilians.

After adjusting his stride, he continues towards the closet. He pouts at the grey, white, and beige selection presented to him. The lack of orange is a bummer but expected, but some color would be nice. He picks the thick trousers closest to brown, a white T-shirt, and the grey sweatshirt.

A small smile tugs at his lips as he spots yellow. On the sweatshirt's right breast is a golden circle surrounded by four smaller circles. It's tiny and not orange, but he'll take what he can get. He spots a pair of thick socks and snow boots by the door. They weren't for indoor use, but they're better than bare feet on the cold floor.

Dressed, he heads downstairs. He follows his ears towards the hushed chatter of two women. Their accents masks their words from him. The little he understands tells him they are talking about him, and it's not good news. His ears lead him to the living room. He knocks on the doorway, "Hello," before he enters.

The younger girl jumps in surprise at his entrance while the elder woman sends him a raised brow.

"Ah."

The elder woman interrupts the younger. "My Dear, would you mind fetching me medicine?"

"Your medicine? But didn't you-" The girl's eyes widen and darts to him before returning to the woman. "Oh. Yes! Your medicine! I'll go get it from"-her eyes shift to him and back to the woman-"outside. I'll go outside and get it, the medicine." She leans forward and whispers, "When do you want me to come back?"

His lips curl in amusement as the woman rubs her furrowed brows with a sigh. The two's demeanor contrasts with each other the same way their appearances do. The youth has pale skin and dark hair while the elder has dark skin and grey hair.

With a quick curtsy that shows off her pink dress, the girl leaves.

The elder straightens her posture on the chair. Her long-sleeved, grey button-down shirt and dark green trousers show no creases or wrinkles. Her sea-green eyes narrow at him, and her lips press together into a thin line.

He gives a small smile to lighten the grim atmosphere her tense expression creates. "Hi. Thanks for taking care of me while I was out, Mrs...? Oh, right. I'm Uzumaki Naruto, but 'Naruto' will be fine."

Her expressions soften to a regretful one. With a shake of her head, she tells him, "I'm afraid introductions are moot at this point."

His smile dims. "You're asking me to leave."

She gives him a slow nod. "I am sorry, but if you're well enough to travel, we must ask you leave before sunset." Her eyes avoid his. "Please do not misunderstand. We would let you stay with open arms regardless of your Faunus heritage. That is, under normal circumstances."

"My 'Faunus' heritage?"

"Just because you do not have animal ears or a tail, it doesn't mean we are blind. You might fool people on the three whisker marks on each of your cheeks. On their own, they can pass off as foolish tattoos, but they highlight your other features. Your claws, canines and slit pupils are much more evident thanks to them."

He gazes down on his hand with a grimace. His animistic appearance tells him Kurama's chakra is seeping out just as his is. Yet, he no longer contains Kurama in him. Why does he have access to the strongest tailed beast's chakra if Kurama himself is gone?

He pulls both his and Kurama's chakras deeper into his core. If he lets both chakras be, they will soon leave his body and become unstable. Best not blow up the lady's home.

She takes his silence as a sign to continue. "It is unfortunate, but recent terrorist acts of the White Fang have set the whole hamlet on edge. Their most recent attacks on the Schnee Dust Company have left many casualties. The latest robbery killed a Hunter, a girl who came from here." Her eyes gaze off into the distance. "She was a sweet girl, though brash and simpleminded."

He walks closer to her and lays his hand on her shoulder. "I'm sorry for your loss."

"She used to make quite the ruckus at odd hours. I remember telling her again and again, 'a time and a place'. Youth these days have no respect for their elders."

He steps back and gives her a sad smile. "You loved her."

"It's a small community. Everyone knows each other. Everyone loved her. While I doubt the folks here will demand your removal..."

Love breeds sacrifice which in turn breeds hatred.

"And hatred will bring the Creatures of Grimm." She wipes away her unshed tears.

He wasn't aware he whispered his thoughts out loud.

"Our main supplier left in hopes of better profits. The vulture"-her fist slams against her lap-"wishes to exploit Vale's misfortune. The sudden rise in Dust thefts in Vale raises their Dust prices. With our own Dust shortage, our defenses are at an all-time low."

"I understand. I'll go."

"Tomorrow."

"It's all right. I have all afternoon to prepare before sunset."

"Tomorrow. Let me extend to you this small kindness, please."

"All right. Thank you." He turns to return to his room. His chakra problem needs attention. As his reserves replenish, the stronger the pull on his chakra to leave the body.

As he reaches the doorway out, she calls to him, "Wait. Neja said you asked about your three friends."

He turns. "They're not my friends."

"Family?"

He shakes his head. "Never met them before. Are they all right?"

"Yes. Rumor tells me they've made it back to their village to the south. Which reminds me, they haven't been able to find your weapon due to a sudden snowfall. They had other priorities as you could imagine."

"I hope they didn't spend too much time on their search. I didn't have a weapon with me."

"You faced Grimm without your weapon?"

" _My_ weapon? You mean something personal?"

"Doesn't every Huntsman trainee have one?"

"I'm done with the academy, but not a 'Huntsman'."

"Which Huntsman academy did you drop out from? Atlas? Beacon? Haven? Shade?"

"I graduated, but not from a Huntsman academy."

"But you were a warrior?"

"I still am." Footsteps warn him of Neja's return.

Neja pops out from behind him. "You are?"

Awrazh places a hand over her heart, startled. "You're back. I haven't called for you yet."

"Oh. Was I to wait for your signal? I'm sorry."

Naruto pats her on the shoulder. "It's fine. We just finished our little talk. Would it be okay for me to head out and stretch my legs?"

Awrazh nods. "Be back before dinner."

He nods and leaves the two women. His first priority is to find a place he can take care of his chakra problem. He wants to experiment more without the risk of blowing someone else up.

The main door creaks open, and he closes it with care. Outside, snow reflects sunlight. He raises his hand to shade his eyes, but sunlight still blinds him. The windows act as mirrors. He turns to return indoors hoping to ask for a pair of goggles or sunglasses.

He stops.

His eyes snap back to the windows. His hand touches his face. "What the hell?" The violet irises and slit pupil, the thick whisker marks, and sharp claws don't surprise him. He can feel Kurama's chakra bursting to come out. But no amount of the tailed beast's chakra did _this_.

In the window's reflection is not a man but a boy about seventeen or eighteen.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

* * *

First chapter is out.

I debated simply skipping ahead to him already in Beacon. I chose to start here for many reasons. The fight at the very start serves multiple purposes.

For one, it starts the fic out with some action which readers seem to like.

More importantly, shows the kind of character he is. Risking his life for people he doesn't even know(he doesn't even get a good look at their faces) is just such a Naruto thing to do.

I also didn't want an exposition done talking about the chakra problem in the past tense. This chakra issue will be something Naruto will have to deal with this whole fic. I wanted to introduce it in a similar way one might introduce an important character.

Him getting kicked out the village serves multiple purposes as well.

I aim to show that the people in the village are not evil(they took care of him, made sure he is well before sending him off, tried to find his weapon which is a bit personal for a huntsman, etc). Despite that, they kicked him out because they believe him to be a Faunus. What they did still sucks, but they didn't do it for cartoonishly evil purposes.

This highlights another issue Naruto has to deal with. He looks like Faunus(maybe he is maybe he isn't a Faunus. Doesn't really matter)and thus has to deal with Faunus discrimination.

I also aim to show how the White Fang's actions negatively affect other Faunus.

Another goal of this chapter is to make the world feel a tiny bit more interconnected. Robberies in Vale affect economies in remote hamlets/villages/towns/nomads around Atlas.

Some other details to talk about.

The arm loss. It's a significant issue, yes. For example, Naruto would have had an easier time against the Grimm if he had both arms. But Naruto's not gonna make a big deal out of it. Other shinobi didn't. He didn't when he first lost the arm. He won't make a big deal out of it now.

Personality. He's not shown his hyperactive self here. But that's because he's not all that hyperactive anymore. This is adult Naruto, Hokage Naruto, Naruto who's had a wife and two kids. There's still some of his younger self in there, but he also has a lot of maturity and growth on top of that too.

* * *

 **Next Chapter:** White Snow

* * *

Next chapter should have a time skip. It should introduce our Weiss Schnee. It should set up why Naruto goes to Beacon. I say 'should' because nothing is set in stone.


	3. Chapter 2: White Snow

**Disclaimer** : I don't own RWBY or Naruto. RWBY is the property of Rooster Teeth Productions. Naruto is the property of and Masashi Kishimoto. Neither are my intellectual property. There is no financial gain made from this will I seek any. This is for entertainment purposes only.

* * *

 **Chapter 2:** White Snow

* * *

 _"More than a month ago, a falling star turned night into blinding day, and a golden cloud rained Dust for a week."_

Weiss resists the urge to roll her eyes at the news on the restaurant's hologram screen. She doubts there's a person on Remnant who hasn't heard of the phenomenon by now. The event itself was hard to miss, and anyone who did miss it would have heard of it over the nonstop coverage by the news.

 _"Some call it a sign of good fortune. Others say it is a dark omen."_

The most prevalent theory among more rational minds points to a meteor. Space flight is impossible as Dust does not function outside of Remnant's atmosphere. A meteorite would be a rare opportunity for scientific study.

This news outlet ran a total of three segments to the scientific possibilities. Interviews with superstitious common folk went on for days.

 _"The Schnee Dust Company is one of the largest producers and exporters of Dust in the world. As such, the Schnee Dust Company has a larger interest to the event than most. The company has admitted the event's proximity to their headquarters was fortunate. Though according to a spokesperson, they'd have sent expeditions regardless of distance."_

Weiss scoffs at the official statement the SDC gave the public before taking a sip of her coffee. She is under no illusion. The possibility of technological advancement or profit for the Schnee Dust Company is slim.

While the Dust storm rained down a lot of Dust, the drizzle spread out far too much to be worth collecting. They get much more Dust for much cheaper through their mines. Their scientists took samples, but they couldn't observe anything special about it.

Scientific progress through the study of an extraterrestrial object is improbable. All reliable witnesses lead to the conclusion that there won't be a meteorite to find. The most probable outcome says whatever fell burned up in the atmosphere. They'd be lucky to find anything larger than the tip of her pinky.

She turns to Winter, her sister, across the table from her. "Why are we here?"

Winter keeps her eyes on her scroll as she replies. "We are here to meet a person of interest."

"I don't mean why we are here in this restaurant." From what she gathers, Winter's business with the person isn't a high priority. Winter didn't plan for it either. The opportunity presented itself for them to meet, and Winter took it. If they did plan it, Winter would have finished her research a week ago instead of going over the info today. "Why are we here, outside of Atlas?"

Winter's eyes roam the text alongside a blurry video on the holographic tablet as she speaks. "I am here on behalf of the Atlesian military. My current mission is to protect the Schnee Dust Company's expedition." Winter's gaze leaves the scroll and stays on her for a moment. "You are here to lead said expedition."

Weiss raises a brow at that response. "By lead the expedition, they mean to sit here and do nothing. They've already set up before I got here, and I doubt any order I give will mean anything to them. As for protection, we are outside the Kingdom of Atlas, but we aren't far away in dangerous lands. Twenty-four Atlesian Knight-130s is overkill wouldn't you say? The two of us would be enough."

"I would remind you that you have yet to enter a Huntsman Academy."

"In half a month, I'll be in Beacon." A wince flashes across her face at the thought of her father's disapproval. She takes another sip of warm coffee and returns her focus on the current topic. "More than that, I've studied and trained. I can fight."

"You lack actual combat experience."

Weiss' lips press into a thin line for a moment before they return to a strained smile. "Maybe this expedition will give me some." Her sister is right, but there isn't anything she can do about that. Her best bet would be to convince Winter to let her tag along when Winter was out in the field. It was something she considered impossible until today, and she doubts a repeat is in her future.

"Perhaps." The tone in Winter's voice tells her the possibility is slim.

Weiss fights the frown from her lips and changes the topic away from her lacking as a fighter. "So, what's the real reason you are here?" She leaves the question of why she herself is here. If she were to guess, they sent her here to convince the public the SDC cares about the phenomenon.

"Classified." Winter's response is automatic, and her tone is almost robotic.

"Of course." Weiss expected the answer before it came. Winter is a specialist in the Atlesian Military's Special Operatives unit. Half of what Winter does is on a need to know basis.

Weiss's gaze drifts to the two Atlesian Knights with them in the restaurant. The remaining twenty-two robots patrol around the expedition's temporary base outside the town. Empty seats near her and the wary faces of the remaining patrons tells her they are unwelcome sights.

Then again, perhaps they aren't wary of the robot guards as much as they are of her and her sister as Schnees. From what she can see, this town has a higher than average number of Faunus. Her mind drifts to the SDC's transition into a moral gray area beneath her father's command. She shakes her head. Those concerns are beyond her reach, for now.

She raises the cup to her lips, but her appetite for the brew is gone. Her cup tinkles as she settles it on the saucer's triangular rainbow logo. The remaining coffee reflects her small frown before it disappears into a neutral expression.

Weiss straightens her posture when she sees Winter lay her scroll on the table. She follows Winter's gaze to a young man approaching their table. Her eyes widen at his slit-like pupils. She keeps her face blank of her internal thoughts. Considering their location, it shouldn't surprise her that their guest would be a Faunus.

She turns away from him and settles her gaze down to the rainbow 'V' on her cup. The three, thin whisker marks on each of his cheek remind her too much of the White Fang's logo.

"So, you're The Fox." Winter's voice snaps Weiss from her thoughts.

She berates herself in her mind for such foolishness. With a slight rise of her chin, she forces her eyes on the man.

Said man groans and combs his hand over his golden mane. "Of everything I said, they pick 'Fox'. They don't go for 'Konoha's Orange Hokage' or 'The Super Awesome Ninja'. They choose 'Fox', which is incorrect by the way. I'm-was-the Nine-Tailed Fox's Jinchūriki."

Weiss holds back the questions on her tongue. While it was Winter's idea to bring her here, Winter had second thoughts halfway through. Winter didn't say anything, but Weiss can read her sister better than Winter gives her credit for. The last thing she needs is to have Winter send her to the expedition.

Winter slides her scroll across the table towards him. "But you are the one here," she points to a video in the scroll, "who fought the White Fang three days ago, yes?"

The young man raises his brow at the scroll before giving a short nod. "Yeah, that's me kicking their asses."

Weiss's eyes drop to the video. She frowns as the image is upside down from her perspective, but the red logo on their armor is clear to see. "Of course, it's the White Fang," she whispers to herself.

"And causing property damage," Winter quips in time for the video to show an explosion.

He shrugs and leans back against his chair. "Unfortunate but unavoidable. Still better than the alternative." Despite his relaxed posture, his eyes roam the restaurant every few seconds.

Weiss would have missed that detail if she wasn't so fascinated with his eyes. Purple is an uncommon color but nothing too unusual. The specks of red shimmering within them, though. Those are notable. She jumps when they shift to stare into hers.

"Your coffee is getting cold." He points to her cup.

Weiss stares at the sharp nail at the end of his index finger.

"You're not mute are you?"

"No!" She chides herself for her foolishness though her eyes linger on his hand. "I'm not thirsty."

She jolts upright when his hand swipes forward. A metallic schlikt alerts her to Winter's drawn dagger. The Faunus ignores the blade and gulps down her coffee. Murmurs from the restaurant's patrons fill the air.

Her eyes drop to her side where her sword, Myrtenaster, remains holstered. A small voice in the back of her mind admonishes her. Winter needs to open the hilt of her sword to reach the hilt of her dagger. Her sister did all that in the time it took for Weiss to jump in her seat like a startled child.

Winter lowers the blade but keeps it in hand. "I would appreciate it if you refrain from any sudden movements."

He chuckles. "Relax. I doubt my claws can punch through either of your force fields in one blow." He returns her empty cup on the saucer.

"So you are familiar with Aura." Winter picks up the scroll and replays the video. "We couldn't confirm you had unlocked yours. None of the footage captured any instance of the White Fang hitting you."

"None of them could have hit me if I was missing a leg instead of an arm."

Weiss' eyes take a discreet peek at the tied off sleeve where his right arm should be. All this time, she hadn't noticed such a significant detail. Intent on not repeating such a mistake, she sits up straighter and focuses on him. A spark of pride ignites in her when Winter misses him mouth the word 'Aura' to himself when she takes a sip of coffee.

Winter sets the drink down and turns the scroll towards the Faunus. "While you are no doubt skilled, your actions were brash and your form lacks structure. You have talent, but it is raw and unfocused. Atlas Academy will temper your skills. With study and training, Atlas Academy will bring out your full potential."

His eyebrows lift and his lips curl up more with each sentence. He chuckles. "You go through my contacts and invite me here to offer me an application to your academy?"

"If you worry about your financial situation, don't. There will be no tuition, and Atlas Academy will provide you with an allowance. You'll need to take an entrance exam. The practical exam will test your combat skills. From what I've seen, you should have no trouble passing it. The written exam is a formality and won't affect your admittance into Atlas Academy. At worst, Atlas Academy will provide mandatory remedial lessons."

He leans back. His amused grin never leaving his face. "Is that all?"

"It is a generous offer."

"Thanks, I guess, but no. I'd say sorry for wasting your time, but you also wasted mine so let's call it even. If there is nothing else," he stands.

Winter rises as he does. "We can arrange a free flight to Atlas Academy so you can see it for yourself before you make your decision."

"I doubt a tour will change my mind."

"Then will you tell us the reason for your refusal?"

"Sure. I already passed the academy and don't want to go through it again."

Winter's brows furrow. "You're not in our records. Which Huntsman Academy did you attend? Beacon? Haven? Shade?"

"None of the above. Not a Huntsman."

"Then what are you?"

He raises a brow at Winter. "Weren't you listening to me earlier? 'Konoha's Orange Hokage'? 'Super Awesome Ninja'? 'The Nine-Tailed Fox's Jinchūriki'?" His smile dims at the last one.

Weiss's words, "Those are stupid," slip out before she can stop them. She resists the urge to sit down in embarrassment. She doesn't even remember standing up.

The "Super Awesome Ninja" grins wide. "So she has got some spark in her after all. For a second there I worried I read you wrong, but you are like Hanabi."

"Who?" Weiss loosens of her self-restraint and straightens her posture with a hand to her hip. She fell in the pool, she might as well swim with dignity.

"I guess you could say Hanabi's another firecracker. The name's Naruto by the way since you're not a fan of the alternatives."

"I'm not a firecracker." Her eyes lock with his, in part defiance of him and in part as a means to avoid her gaze straying over to Winter.

He shows no such qualms. His gaze jumps back and forth between her and her sister while his grin widens further. "Alright, how about this? I'll give you more time to convince me."

Without seeing it, Weiss can tell Winter's eyes narrow at his words.

Winter's voice has a tinge of wariness in them, "What do you propose?"

"Rumor has it both of you are here with those scientists in the camp outside the town. They'll be here for a while which means both of you will too. Let me stay with you guys until you leave this area."

"Why?" Weiss prides herself on her confident tone. The tiny voice in the back of her head warns her that she might be ruining Winter's negotiation. She ignores it, for now.

His already impossible grin stretches wider. "Why what?"

"A second ago, you were adamant in your refusal. Why the change of heart?"

"I've been out in the snow for a week, and the town's Inn will eat up half my wallet for two day's stay."

Winter crosses her arms. "You want to us to cover food and shelter?"

"Why not? This is pocket change compared to what you were offering earlier."

Weiss crosses her own arms. "That was with the guarantee that you'd attend Atlas Academy."

"Nope. The terms were for my enrollment. I could enroll, take the allowance, and not take a single step in class."

"The deal implies attendance and participation," Weiss says through gritted teeth.

He wags a finger at her. "Implication doesn't hold a lot of weight. For all anybody knows, all you were trying to do was get my name into your school. It wouldn't be unusual for an organization to attach itself to someone else's reputation."

"Reputation?" Weiss' eyebrow twitches. "I haven't heard of you until today!"

"It was enough for your mother to go through all the trouble of setting up this meeting."

"She's my sister!" Winter and Weiss exclaim at the same time.

"Sorry." His shrug and apology are insincere. "The hair threw me off. Maybe your hair wouldn't have all grayed if you guys let loose once in a while. Stress is a killer."

Winter's fists clench tight against her arm. "Our hair is white, not gray."

Weiss's does too. "And we do so let loose."

"But we understand the value of decorum."

"Unlike some juvenile dropouts." If she wasn't so offended, Weiss would be somewhat freaked out by how in sync she and her sister are.

A laugh escapes him. "First, I already told both of you, I graduated." He holds out his hand stopping her from verbalizing her doubt of that claim. "Second, I'm older than I look, much older."

"Right." Weiss doesn't hide her skepticism. "Because you act so much more mature than you seem." She hopes her sarcasm bites deep.

"If you want to skip out on the fun bit, let's get straight to business." He stands straighter but keeps his weight on one foot, maintaining his relaxed appearance. "All I can eat and a room in wherever you're staying, all on your wallet."

Winter rubs her forehead. "In exchange, you will give us two hours of your time every day."

"Two hours? Are you telling me you don't trust in your own negotiating skills? Come on. You don't need two hours to tell me how awesome you think your school is."

A beep interrupts Winter's reply. The message written on her phone brings out a frown on Winter's face. Her eyes lock into him with intensity. "Two hours that's our terms. Take it or leave it."

He holds out his hand. "Shake on it?"

Winter scoffs but takes his hand. She gives it one firm shake before pulling back her hand as she turns to Weiss. "I've got to go."

"Grimm?" Weiss hopes it's nothing major.

"Classified."

Weiss can't muster the energy to sigh. "Of course."

"Hey. Don't be rude." His mirthful comment stops Winter half turn as she prepares to leave.

"Excuse me, we are being rude?" Weiss verbalizes Winter's incredulous expression.

"Well, yeah. You shouldn't eat and run. Nothing on the menu is free. Plus, you're already saying goodbye, but you guys haven't introduced yourself yet. I thought you Schnee's were high-class or something. What? Are you waiting for someone else to introduce your names for you?"

"We've already paid." Weiss recalls Winter insisting they pay as they order. She anticipated the possibility of them needing to rush out due to an emergency.

Winter speaks before Weiss can continue and comment on his last sentence. "It's obvious you already know our names."

"So?"

Winter lets out an exasperated breath. "Fine." She points to herself, "Winter Schnee," then points to her, "Weiss Schnee". Winter gives a mock bow, "It was unpleasant to meet you, and I have more important matters to attend to. Goodbye." She storms out with as much restraint she can muster, and Weiss follows a step beside her.

The mechanical noise of their robot guard's march mixes with the murmuring crowd. They stop two steps after they exit. Winter turns to her with a small smile which Weiss returns. Winter strides away followed by one Atlesian Knight.

Weiss whispers, "Good luck." Winter is a talented specialist and doesn't need luck. It still feels good to wish it even if Winter won't hear.

"Just the two of us, huh?"

Weiss jumps at his voice behind her, the solemn moment shattered. She spins to face him. "Don't you have to be somewhere?"

"Nope. Got all day free."

Five seconds alone with him and she's already annoyed. "Then excuse me. I have an expedition to lead."

"Sure you do." His smile remains on his face. "Don't let me stop you." He gestures to the road. "Go on."

Every fiber in her being urges her to punch that smile off his face. With inhuman self-restraint, she turns around and walks away. The one remaining humanoid robot follows twelve steps behind her. She wonders what she should do with Winter gone. There's not much she could do in camp with the scientists.

"If you're lost, the large tents with the people in lab coats are in the opposite direction." His voice startles her.

Weiss takes consolation in not showing her surprise, much. She is sure he saw her slight misstep. "Why are you stalking me?" She refrains from turning to address him and keeps facing forward.

"I wouldn't call walking beside you stalking. It's not my fault you aren't paying attention to your surroundings."

She stops and turns to her left.

Sure enough, he stands there and waves at her with his cheeky grin. "It's a big town. There's nothing wrong with admitting you're lost."

"I'm not lost!" With a huff, she resumes walking. "My stuff is inside the inn so I'm heading there first."

"Cool. It'll be nice to see where I'll be staying at for the next few days."

She stumbles to a halt. "What? No! You're not staying with us. There's another inn on the other side of town. I'm sure of it. We checked there first. You can stay there."

"Not the deal we agreed on. All I can eat and a room in wherever you two are staying, all on your sister's wallet."

"You pervert!"

"I'm not staying in the same rooms you two share, just the same inn. If you're staying where I think you're staying, there isn't much bed space for three people to share."

"My sister and I are not staying in the same room."

"Why not?"

"We can afford rooms of our own and we value each other's privacy."

"Shame. It would have been a better excuse for you two to hang out than bringing you to that restaurant earlier."

"She didn't bring me there to hang out."

He raises a brow at her.

"She didn't."

"So she brought you there to..."

"Perhaps she thought I could serve as a model of what an aspiring Huntress should be."

"Right, and that's why she never mentioned you'd be entering Atlas Academy."

"I'm not going to Atlas."

"But you want to be a Huntress right?"

"I've decided to go to Beacon."

"How were you there to help convince me to go to Atlas if you yourself chose Beacon?"

Her stomach drops. She hopes her revelation didn't cost her sister the negotiation. "My choice has nothing to do with the quality of Atlas Academy. I picked Beacon for," she hesitates, "personal reasons."

"That's fine. It still leaves your sister no reason to bring you to that restaurant other than to bond."

"You think Winter got me there for girl talk?" The incredulity in her voice didn't match the glimmer of hope in her chest. It was a nice sentiment, her sister making an excuse to spend time together.

"Why not?"

She shakes her head but doesn't reply, afraid of any answer she might come up with.

If he had anything else to say, he didn't get a chance to voice it as a young girl yells, "Mr. Kitty!" The energetic child jumps and waves to catch their attention.

He waves back at the girl. "Hey, Princess."

Weiss's eyes widen in realization. She turns to her companion with a vicious smile. "Mr. Kitty?" Payback is petty but sweet.

His grimace makes it sweeter. He ignores her and directs his attention to the child skipping towards them. "What are you doing out here? Don't you have a curfew?"

The young girl shakes her head so fast her pink beanie drops and reveals her white rabbit ears. "I'm not a baby." The girl bends down to pick up her cap but stops and steps back with wide eyes.

Weiss curses the robot bodyguard. The AK-130's metallic dark gray and red highlights make for an intimidating image. A second later, she notices the girls fearful eyes aimed at her, the humanoid robot far behind them. She attempts a gentle smile. Her smile falters when her mind conjures an imagined future of the child, an older and angrier Faunus.

She turns away from the child and walks away. The two Faunus can catch up and get themselves into trouble, and she can get some quiet.

"Hey."

She turns to his voice. "Here I thought I had gotten rid of you." She didn't have the energy to give her words their bite. Her eyes note the tiny hand gripping the shoulder of his coat. "I'm not sure your little friend's grip will last long."

"I got her." He wiggles his shoulder, emphasizing his hand behind his back.

Muffled words come from behind him.

He chuckles. "The little princess won't sit on my shoulders. She says it is not for little girls, and big girls get piggy back rides."

A small smile forces its way to Weiss's lips. "Big girls should walk by their own feet."

"You're both being silly. We can all use the lift sometimes." He turns his head towards the girl at his back. "That said, I can't carry you forever, and you're about to doze off."

The girl muffles out, "Nuh-uh."

He turns his face back to Weiss. "How about it firecracker? You don't mind a slight detour so we can bring back the little princess to her castle?"

"Fine." In truth, she has nothing better to do. The scientists in camp don't need her input nor her leadership. They won't kick her out, they can't, but she'll bore herself doing nothing. She had hoped to get some help with her training from Winter after they left the restaurant. The call killed any chance of that happening soon. Disappointment makes the idea of training by herself depressing.

They turn around and head away from her inn. Weiss glares at him when he gives the AK-130 a pat on the head as they walk passed it but says nothing. The slight detour turns out to be a walk to the other side of town. They spend the walk in silence as the little girl falls asleep soon after. Unfamiliar with this area of the town, she lets him take the lead.

She notices him nod at a passerby who waves right back. A few more passersby greet him though he shakes his head and motions to the sleeping child. A handful sends her apprehensive glances but most ignore her.

He turns his head to her, and, for a second, she swears he is in a serious or thoughtful mood. "Hey, firecracker." His teasing tone erases such conceptions.

"What is it?" She winces at her snappish response.

He replies, "You're a huntress," before she can muster up the will to apologize.

She makes an effort to keep her tone even. "Yeah." As irritating as he is, she shouldn't take out her bad mood on him.

"So you should be strong, right?"

"Sure?" She is uncertain on where he's going with his inquiries.

He turns his whole body to her but doesn't stop walking towards their destination. "Would you mind carrying Princess the rest of the way? My arm is getting sore."

"Don't walk backward, idiot. You'll hit somebody, or you'll trip and hurt the girl on your back."

He grins wide. "It's nice to hear you care. So you'll carry her, right?"

She groans. "Fine. Hand her over you big baby."

He turns away and slows down.

She reaches forward and grabs the child from his back. Her arms shift until she cradles the child's head against her shoulder. "If you go to Atlas, they might be able to train some endurance into you."

He laughs. "Sure. I'll keep that in mind."

She glares at him when he waves at a passing elder couple. Her complaint, "Sore arms," comes as a whisper. The scar on the kid's left rabbit ear is easy to see up close. With her luck today, it would somehow enhance the Faunus's already impressive hearing. She didn't want to risk waking the kid up. The kid might freak out in her arms.

Despite her irritation, she'll admit, to herself and only herself, his energy is infectious. More people greet her companion, and whatever their original disposition, they part with smiles. None send her any more looks, and she even gets a small smile from a goat Faunus.

They reach their destination before dark. "Is this an orphanage?" Beyond the iron fence, the large brick building stands behind a small wooden playground.

"Yeah." He presses the doorbell. "It near what used to be the center of town, but Grimm attacks destroyed half the buildings in this area. The wall in this section is temporary until they can get the resources to build a better one."

Her eyes scan the horizon behind the orphanage. The large walls are as tall as the orphanage but are half the height of the walls near her inn. His words and those walls remind her how dangerous life outside the kingdoms are.

This town isn't far from the kingdom of Atlas so its size and longevity are the exceptions, not the norm. Most civilization outside the kingdoms consists of roaming nomads and small villages. They have a tendency of disappearing. It might just be a matter of time before this town does too.

An old voice, "Hello," snaps her from her grim musings. "Naruto? Shouldn't you be at sea by now?"

He rubs his head and gives a sheepish smile. "I guess I got lost on the road of life and ended up back here."

The woman shakes her head. "You've landed yourself in more trouble, no doubt." She turns to Weiss and raises a brow then turns back to him. "Big trouble."

Weiss is glad her robot bodyguard stays still far, far behind them.

He waves off her concern. "I'm in no trouble."

"Yet," the elder quips.

"And if I was, I can handle myself."

The woman grabs him by the ear. "You'd better! I'm too old to be burying any more young fools. You die before I do, and I'll pull you into life so I can cane some sense into you. I should give you a few now." She lets his ear go. "Now, would you and your," she turns to Weiss before turning back to him, "friend care to stay?"

"Nah. It's late. If they find out I'm here, they'll be too excited to sleep."

"That they'll be. Will you visit some other time?"

He shrugs. "Can't make any promises. You understand how it is."

The woman shakes her head. "Youth, always on the move. Alright." She reaches for the child, and Weiss hands her over. "Have a good night. I'll tell the kids you came to visit."

"Thanks, granny."

The woman huffs and turns around to leave.

Weiss breath hitches. On the back of the woman's blue cloak is a white circle around a white tiger head. "That's..."

Naruto places a finger over his lips.

She whispers, "Is that what I think it is?!"

He nods. "The White Fang's original logo, almost. The creature in the center isn't accurate."

Weiss stares at him in shock.

"It shouldn't surprise you. The White Fang was a symbol of peace and unity between the Faunus and Humans. I'm not good with history," he grumbles something inaudible, "but I've learned that much." He walks back to the way toward her inn.

She follows suit and walks beside him. "That was before they became an organization of terrorism. The White Fang of peace and unity is dead!"

"Sure, but you should remember that their change wasn't that long ago." He pats the Atlesian Knight's head, "Good boy," as he walks passed it. "Faunus today remember how the White Fang was, and many still cling to those ideals."

She ignores him treating the gun wielding robot as a dog. "Some believe the current White Fang shares those ideals. Many Faunus prefer the new White Fang's 'proactive' approach over the older passive one."

"It's an unfortunate reality that violence produces great short term results. This town is proof enough of that."

"What?"

"Faunus discrimination here has reached an all-time low according to the official records."

"There isn't a hint of White Fang activity in this town." Winter quadruple checked that fact before she let Weiss join her into town. If there was actual White Fang activity nearby, Winter would have brought more guards. She might have gone so far as keeping Weiss in the camp where security is highest. "Unless the rumors of the contrary are true."

"Don't worry. No White Fang here, yet. Word of mouth is enough. News of the White Fang firebombing stores that refused to serve Faunus spreads far. Make a few rumors that the White Fang are here and all a sudden stores have a change of heart. Discriminatory policies within stores disappear within weeks."

"A few rumors can do that much?"

"Symbols help a lot."

"Aside from the old lady, the White Fang's symbols aren't anywhere here."

"You're here so most of the population are cautious. Granny is one of the few that don't give a rat's ass that a couple of white-haired girls are in town. There are also those that hate the SDC, but everyone understands they can't piss them off."

She makes an educated guess on why. "The town survives its size thanks to Dust from outside. Half of that Dust comes from the SDC or businesses affiliated with the SDC."

"Much more than half. People here also don't mind using symbols that don't belong to the White Fang but allude to them. The restaurant where we met is one example."

Her brow furrows in thought. "The rainbow 'V'?"

"Combine all colors to get white, and then make the letter a shape."

"We had a meeting in a place that condones the White Fang?"

"No. Kinda, but no. They use the symbol regardless of how they view the White Fang's action. All they care about is how having that pretty logo keeps the peace in their workplace."

"This is crazy. How can anyone be alright with this? The White Fang are monsters, and this town is using their mark for convenience?"

He stops. "Convenience?" The anger in his voice freezes her. "Yeah, losing limbs tends to be a great inconvenience."

She steps back.

He exhales, and his anger fades to a sad smile. "Sorry." He turns around and walks forward.

After a second, she returns to following him. "I'm sorry too." She doesn't understand why she's apologizing, but she felt it was the right thing to say.

He shakes his head. "Don't be. I shouldn't have snapped. What you said was stupid," his fists clench, "but you didn't know that."

She bites back a retort. An argument will get her nowhere. Instead, she asks, "Dismemberment?"

He stays silent for a moment. "You saw her scar, right?"

"The Faunus kid?" Then it comes to her, and she stops in her tracks.

He stops and turns his face to her.

Her hand covers her mouth as it drops open, and her eyes widen. "Her ear."

He nods with his jaw clenched.

"Who?" She almost can't believe someone would do that to a child, Faunus or not. Almost. If anything, the White Fang proves how vicious others can be.

"Calm down. She got medical attention in time, and the doc sewed it back on."

She didn't notice her clenched fists until his words. Her hands relax but clench again after a second. "No. Anyone who hurts a child is a monster."

"Princess won't appreciate you hurting her friends."

"Her friends?! Her friends did this to her?!"

"They weren't her friends at the time. The brats were-"

"Bullies."

"Yes, but that's the past. They've made nice."

"They cut off her ear!"

"And granny and I set them straight. Weiss."

"They cut off her ear."

"Weiss." He doesn't shout, but his voice echoes in her ears.

She shrinks into herself.

He places a hand on her shoulder and gives her a small smile. "I understand your anger." His arm drops to his sides. "When I found out," he clenches his fist, "I was ready to break some bones." His fist loosens, and he exhales. "I have a habit of getting words between punches. They had two black eyes each by the time our talk ended."

"And what could they have said to earn forgiveness for mutilating a little girl?"

"You have to remember, they are also children."

"That's not an excuse."

"Children take cues from adults. Don't forget, this place wasn't always as tolerant of Faunus as it is now. A child grows up seeing adults treat certain kinds of people a certain kind of way, and they figure that's how it is. They learned to hate Faunus, and they didn't even know why."

She sighs. "I guess it doesn't help that they don't have any parents to teach them better."

"Good guess on them being orphans."

"She's an orphan. I figured the kids she'd interact with the most would be those from the same orphanage."

"Though what you said about parents isn't always true. Trust me. Heck, sometimes parents are the ones who encourage it." His eyes stay on her direction, but they don't lock with hers. It's as if he's staring at something behind her.

"I'm sorry." How many times has she said that today?

His eyes close, and he shrugs. When they open, the far-off gaze disappears, and his eyes return to hers. "The past is the past." His smile grows, "I've forged my path," then shrinks. "Let me tell you the saddest part of the ear cutting. It was an accident."

"How do you cut off an ear by accident?"

"They weren't trying to cut off her ear. One of them grabbed it and pulled while the two made fun of her. From what I gather, it's something they got from adults which doesn't surprise me. Stores here once had a nasty habit of dragging Faunus out by their horns or extra ears."

She has a hard time reconciling the image of the town she sees now and the town he is describing that once was.

"One of the girls decided to the copy their leader and grabbed on the other ear. She's young and doesn't have great control. Her claws came out by accident, and they were sharp enough to cut flesh."

"Wait, you're telling me one of her bullies was a Faunus?"

"I told you. Sad isn't it? The trio didn't even know what a Faunus was. All they saw were adults hurting Faunus, but horns and ears are among the easiest traits to see. The kids figured it was horns and ears that justified their bullying."

She falls silent at that but remembers something. "How are they her friends?" If someone cut off her ear, the last thing she'd want is to be friends them.

"Kids are fickle. One day they're worst enemies, the next they're best friends." He scratches the back of his head. "I guess I had a hand in it too."

"How?"

"When Princess got out of the hospital, I sorta locked them in the same room for half a day."

"You forced a girl to stay in the same room as her bullies. The same bullies who cut off her ear."

"I wanted them to apologize. If it makes you happier, I tied the trio up and gave her a knife."

"You gave a child a knife?!"

"For protection."

"She could have cut herself! Or worse, she might have hurt them!"

"I made sure she knew how to hold it right before I left the room. Besides, I've practiced with sharper blades when was younger than her. In the end, she cut their ropes, and no one got hurt. Well, one of them got hurt, but it was a slap in the face and nothing more."

"You are irresponsible."

"I stayed by the door."

She grits her teeth and walks passed him. The sooner she got back to her inn, the sooner she can get away from his stupidity. Too bad for her, a nagging voice in the back of her mind has other ideas. "What do you mean by 'yet'?"

"Yet?"

She takes pride in not jumping at his voice beside her. Although, she expected him to be one step to her right instead of one step ahead to her left. "You said there were, 'No White Fang here, yet.' So they will be here but not yet?"

He mulls it over for a second before answering. "Tell a lie for long enough, and it might become reality. You remember those White Fang your sister said I beat up?"

"Yeah?"

"They weren't White Fang. There's a village far west of here. One of the kids from that fight came from there. The village doesn't harbor any White Fang either. They're too isolated for the White Fang to reach them, but not so isolated to not hear news and rumors of them."

"Are you telling me you fought a group of White Fang wannabes?"

"You could say that. The bad news is if their numbers weren't so small, they'd be a worse than the White Fang."

"Worse?"

"I've fought actual White Fang members before. The wannabe group was much better trained and more fanatical to their cause." He stops and faces her.

She freezes as his gazed catches hers.

"Remember these two lessons. Symbols are powerful tools. Lies can become reality." He turns his body and returns to walking towards the inn.

She follows after him with her eyes lingering on his before he turns his head back to the road.

"In this case, this town uses the White Fang's symbol to lower discrimination. The more they use it and see it works, the more positive they'll view the White Fang's actions. It's subtle, and I doubt they themselves notice. In the end, they'll convince themselves that there was no change. They'll say they always liked the White Fang."

A shiver runs down her spine.

"By then, it won't be hard for the White Fang to find recruits here. Worse, the White Fang won't need to come. A dangerous few will emulate their imagined ideal of the White Fang."

"What you are saying sounds like a nightmare."

"The real world is worse than many nightmares." He gives her a gentle smile. "But for me, it is still better than any dream." His face stretches into a cheeky grin. "Almost. It's hard to beat an endless sea of ramen."

She stumbles at the sudden shift in tone. "Can't you talk about a serious topic without making stu"-she falters when he stops. Weiss follows his gaze to the distance.

Beyond the tall walls, a bright flare lights a small section of night sky bright red. "Weiss," his sudden serious tone shocks her, "did your sister tell you where she was going?"

Her heart skipped a beat at the mention of her sister. "No. Why?"

He shakes his head. "Go to the inn and stay there." He points to the inn a block in front of them. "I've got something to check out." Another flare flies into the air.

A jolt of pain flares on her arm when she catches his elbow and stops him mid run. "Nomads."

He turns to her.

"I heard her say something about going to the forest with a bunch of nomads." She wants him to say the flare has no connection with her sister. Her heart drums in her chest when he doesn't answer right away. "Tell me."

"It's a new thing, and not everyone uses our system so I might be overreacting. But if they are: one flare asks for help, two flares means they need help now, and three flares is a warning to stay away."

She understands. "Three means it's too dangerous for rescue."

"It says, 'leave us to die and save yourself.'"

A third flare soars, and red fills Weiss sight

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

* * *

This second chapter introduces the second character in this story, Weiss.

Just as the first chapter was meant to show important character bit for Naruto, this chapter is meant to show Weiss'.

It's part of the reason why Winter is here. Unfortunately, the show itself didn't give much screen time to Winter, so I had to work off what little we got.

I made it so that at the start, we can see Weiss following Winter's lead. She's not a shy or anything, but she lets Winter do most of the initial talking. But as Naruto gets under her skin, she sets herself forward. Again, Weiss is no wallflower. Still, she is careful not to overstep her bounds with Winter. She cares highly of Winter's opinions.

I also wanted to show that there is a definite skill gap between Winter and Weiss. Think back on that first fight she had against grimm with Ruby. She took to remind herself of the proper stance and made sure she was in the right stance before attacking. And this takes place a little bit before that. Weiss is skilled and has training, but there's also plenty of room for her to grow.

The other bit I wanted to touch on this chapter was Weiss' relation with Faunus and the White Fang.

Here's the problem though and its one of my irritations with the show. They do a lot of tells without showing. Before her confrontation with Blake, when was it established what Weiss feels about Faunus and the White Fang? If there's something I missed, please tell me, because my re-watches haven't shown me any.

Here's a bit where they could have made a reference to it early on. In the very first episode, there was a news report about a Faunus protest and the White Fang. Have Weiss there in the background and just react to it. A simple scoff the moment the White Fang are mentioned wouldn't tell us much, but would establish something of her opinions on the organization. When CRDL bully Velvet, Blake and Yang get their say, but Weiss doesn't. It's not like we can infer much from her silence as the others don't comment either. When she first meets Sun, she has a very negative view of him, but on the other hand, he was shown to break the law twice and be mischievous in general. It's not like she didn't give Ruby a hard time either. So it's very hard to make solid conclusions on her views on Faunus and the White Fang in general.

So, this is how I'll write Weiss when it comes to Faunus and the White Fang. Weiss in this fanfic does NOT hate Faunus. If she has any discriminatory thoughts or feelings about Faunus, it'll be subtle. Weiss in this fanfic DOES hate the White Fang.

Speaking of the White Fang, this chapter is also meant to show some positives of the White Fang's existence. In the show, Blake has said the aggressive approach of the new White Fang worked to get Faunus equal rights. So in this fic, that will be true as well. This town is so Faunus friendly mostly because of the White Fang's indirect influence. I also wanted to make a few examples of why some might like the White Fang's methods.

* * *

 **Next Chapter:** The Shining Beacon

* * *

That shouldn't be much of a spoiler considering the fic's title and summary. If all goes to plan, this will be the chapter that sends Naruto to Beacon.

* * *

 **Author's Note:** Delays

Unfortunately, circumstances have made it so that it is impossible to get the full chapter out before the end of September. My sincerest apologies to all that would care.


	4. Chapter 3: The Shining Beacon

**Disclaimer** : I don't own RWBY or Naruto. RWBY is the property of Rooster Teeth Productions. Naruto is the property of and Masashi Kishimoto. Neither are my intellectual property. There is no financial gain made from this will I seek any. This is for entertainment purposes only.

* * *

 **Chapter 3:** The Shining Beacon

* * *

Three red flares hang in the night sky before they dim and burn out.

"Odds are, your sister is safe." His voice snaps her back to reality. "There are at least four groups near the town she could pick as guides."

She nods and lets go of his sleeve. He's right. The odds favor Winter being safe. Yet her stomach twists.

"As far as I've gathered, three of the four aren't aware of the new signaling system."

Weiss has a few guesses on why.

With that thought, she takes out her Scroll and calls Winter. The Cross-Continental Transmit System makes communication within the kingdoms instantaneous. Her grip tightens when the device tells her Winter is out of range. It takes all her willpower not to shatter the holographic tablet in her hands. Signals become less reliable the further away a user is from a CCT tower, but this town isn't far from Atlas.

She almost drops her Scroll at the nudge to her shoulder.

"I have to go." His gaze lingers at the section of the night sky that was once lit red before returning to her. "Stay safe."

"No!"

"Weiss."

"I'm coming with you."

"Chances are, your sister is safe."

"I know," she locks her eyes with his, "but I will not place my sister's safety on chance."

His purple eyes stare back into hers for a moment before the corners of his lips twitch up into a small smile. "Alright." He steps back and points at her. "Get your gear," he then points northwest, "and meet me at the nearest gate. I promise I'll wait for you there."

She rests her left hand on the hilt of her sword hanging by her hip. "I've got all I need. Let's go."

He raises a brow but says nothing other than, "Follow me," before taking off.

His speed surprises her. She's tempted to try using her semblance to help her keep pace. His sudden stop almost forces her to.

She takes three, fast, deep breaths as she scans the location. The painted, wooden sign says, "Tiger Claw Bar," above the large doorway.

"Why are we here?"

He gives her a grin. "You might have all that you need, but I don't."

"A bar?"

He shrugs. The wooden door creaks as he pushes it open. "The alternative was to leave them in the woods. I trust friends more than I do chance."

She catches the door before it closes and follows after him. The door closes shut behind her with a soft clack. "It's not much of a bar." The place looked more like a spacious eatery than most bars. Its lack of patrons also contrasts against the rowdiness she expected. "At least it is well lit."

He chuckles as he heads to the man cleaning the counter top. "Hey, old man."

The man nods to him but raises a brow at her.

He waves the barman off as he removes his coat and sets it by a chair. "I need my stuff."

The man ducks under the counter and comes back up with a large duffel bag which he tosses towards them.

It crashes on the ground and knocks down a couple of chairs before stopping at her companion's feet. "Couldn't you be more careful with this?" He crouches over the bag and opens it. "Toss it any harder and you'd risk ruining the bag."

She rolls her eyes at his words. "Why didn't you catch it then?"

He raises a knife wrapped in cloth before setting down. "I didn't want to risk my precautions failing and stabbing me through the bag."

Weiss leans forward over his shoulder and takes a look. "I doubt that will last you a month." The dark green material bore a lot of patches and stitches.

"It's the best I can do on a low budget." He pulls out a small bag with a long leather strap which he pulls over his right shoulder.

She leans back and crosses her arms. "You should accept the offer and join Atlas." She hopes her words and posture shows more confidence than she has. "You'd make more than how much you get now."

He unwraps cloth from the blade of each small knife before he places them in the bag resting on his left hip. "You're using your two hours now?" The nimbleness by which he accomplishes this task one-handed says his handicap isn't recent. Each small pause every so often tells her the loss wasn't that old either.

"The deal was you had to give us two hours." She can't stop herself from glancing at the night sky through the window. "There's nothing there that says we can't try to get more than that." Her hands tighten on the elbows of her pale blue, almost white, sleeves.

Every second counts, but she has learned enough from Winter to know haste wastes more time. In truth, his calm combined with the speed of his preparation impresses her. Which is why it surprises her when he rises up and takes his coat a second later.

"That's it? You came here for a dozen knives?"

He pats the small bag on his hip, "It also has rope," and tosses the large bag back to the counter.

The barman doesn't so much as blink as the bag crashes against the wall of bottles behind him.

She shakes her head as she exits. It doesn't surprise her when turning her head reveals him beside her. "Let's get going. We've wasted enough time with your knives."

He shrugs before taking off, and she follows as best she can. "You alright?" The wind almost muffles his words.

"I'm fine." Sure, the speed he's going with is harsh, but she trained to be Huntress. In truth, she's glad he's setting the pace. With how personal this is, she's afraid she might rush through much faster than they are going at the moment. That mistake would mean she'd be too tired to be of any help to anyone.

If the battered, wooden sign shaped as a beer mug is any clue, they've come to another bar. "This one's worse than the last." The commotion inside doesn't sit well with her. "More weapons?"

He shakes his head and kicks the door open. "A friend." The cacophony from the bar almost drowns his voice. "Hey!" he bellows, "Anyone of you seen a golden-eyed blonde around?"

Raucous laughter beside the doorway greets his question. "You think these idiots would notice the color of my eyes?" The young woman leaned against the wall with a large mug of beer in her hand.

Weiss raises a brow at the woman's attire. She doubts any of the drunkards would be able to keep their gaze up higher than the blonde's black tube top. "I'm surprised you haven't frozen to death with that scarf as your sole protection from the cold."

The blonde brushes aside her two long bangs and squints at Weiss with her golden eyes. "A Schnee?" She turns to the male blonde with a raised brow. "You brought a Schnee?"

Weiss crosses her arms. "What's that supposed to mean?"

The woman takes a gulp of her drink before answering. "Don't you have some Faunus to work to death?"

Naruto's slaps the back of the woman's head. "Knock it off."

"Hey!" Weiss shouts when pain flares from the back of her own head.

He glares at both of them. "You can save the squabble for later or do it on the move. Either way, we need to get going."

Weiss stiffens and nods.

The woman stands taller, no longer leaning on the wall, and tosses her empty mug into the bar. "What is this about?" The audible thunk and yelling behind her signals the beginnings of a bar fight.

"We'll talk on the way."

Both of them chase after him. His fast jog turns into a full run once they catch up to him.

It doesn't escape Weiss that while the both of them are a step behind him, the woman is to his left, and she is to his right. She almost wants to call the woman out on the distance she's so keen on keeping between them. Weiss shakes her head and instead turns her attention to the one leading them. She yells, "Why did we have to take her along?" over the air they're rushing passed.

"Yeah, nightlight. What are you dragging me into?"

He turns around, running backward, and points up. "There were three flares up tonight."

The woman's gaze jumps from her to him a couple of times before she replies. "They can handle themselves."

He raises a brow at the woman before turning around back to running forward. "You think cyclops would use three flares on anything they can handle?"

"What makes you think it was her?"

"Who else would prepare three flares?"

"He might."

"Maybe, but from what I've seen of your group, I'd say he'd bring two at most."

Weiss speaks up before the woman can reply. "I don't see why it matters who made the signal. There were three flares, and you say it means someone is in danger. Whoever they are, we're going in to see if we can help."

The woman laughs. "What? Are you trying to play hero? Go back to your castle princess. This isn't the time for milking out some good publicity."

"Ree." His tone is that of a warning.

The other blonde scoffs. "If she used three flares, then we should stay in town. You said so yourself. She wouldn't warn us away from anything they can handle."

"Perhaps, but I have my doubts on her motives. Plus, since you're not sure it is from her, you don't have to take them as if they were. Besides, we both know that wouldn't stop you even if it was."

Weiss interrupts before they get lost in their little chat. "Can we get back to the question?" Weiss pauses as they pass by the exit and leave the road. "Why did we," her words come out slower as they march through knee high snow, "did we have to take her along?" She takes comfort in the fact that the snow slows her companions as well.

"He must have realized an amateur like you wasn't much backup."

He tosses a snowball at the woman which she dodges. "We're not here to fight. This is a search and rescue. We get in, and we get out." He glances at her. "As for your question, the extra hand might become useful if we have to carry any injured personnel."

The woman tosses a snowball at him, which he doesn't bother dodging. "I'm not a pack mule."

She doesn't understand how the blonde woman isn't shivering. Weiss considers her own attire appropriate for the weather, and the air chills her. The woman's white pants revealed her inner thighs for crying out loud.

He chuckles and turns his head to her, ignoring the woman. "She'll also serve as our tracker."

Another snowball flies from the woman's hand and hits his back. "What's the matter? Can't sniff them out from the snow?"

"It isn't my specialty, but I can do it if I have to. I've learned enough of the trade to say that familiarity with who you're searching for helps a lot." He brings them to a stop when they reach the forest. "So," he turns to the woman and gestures to the wall of trees, "lead the way. Where should we start our search? From where would cyclops enter the forest?"

The woman nods and adapts a thinking pose. Her one hand supports her elbow, and her index finger taps against her chin.

Weiss' brows furrow as she recalls the conversation before they left town. By the conversation he and the woman had, she understood the woman knew these nomads. His words here makes it clear these nomads aren't simple acquaintances of the woman. Weiss whispers her question, "She'd leave them here to die?" to him.

Her words weren't silent enough it seems as the woman leaps onto her, knocking her down the snow. The woman pulls her by the front of her top until they are nose to nose. Every breath the woman takes brushes against her skin. The pungent scent of alcohol thickens until she can taste the beer in the back of her throat. Golden orbs glare at her before they vanish along with the weight that was on top of her.

"Behave yourself." His voice draws Weiss' eyes to where he is looking.

The sight of the woman rising from the snow far from her informs Weiss that he threw the woman off of her. Her eyes widen at the sight of the woman's furry ears and tail and her black claws. Weiss checks her own clothes before remembering her attire had survived worse.

His sigh returns Weiss' attention back to him. "Ree."

The woman shakes off the snow and leaps away.

He turns to Weiss and offers her a hand.

A part of her wants to tell him she can stand back up on her own. Weiss ignores it and takes his hand. A strong tug pulls her up though she almost falls forward into him.

"You'll need to work on your footwork."

"Excuse me?" There was something in his words that remind her of Winter.

"That clumsy tackle shouldn't have brought you down, and," he stops mid-sentence.

She dusts off the snow from her clothes. "And?" Weiss surprises herself with the lack of defiance in her tone.

He shakes his head. "Sorry. I'm being too harsh. Besides, this isn't the time to correct every little detail. That's what training is for." He turns his head to where the woman was before returning his focus to her. "Those who break the rules are trash."

Weiss is pretty sure she doesn't need to voice her confusion.

"Your question about her not coming to her friend's rescue."

"I'm sorry." She says before he can continue. If she lets him finish, she might not have the will to say it later. "I didn't mean to imply something so harsh." She also didn't expect for the woman's hearing to be that good.

"Don't be. You weren't wrong. Although, you might want to work on how you say what you say."

She grimaces but nods.

He laughs and her comparisons of him to Winter seem both more accurate and erroneous at the same time. "Don't take it so hard. You're young. Besides, I was worse at times. I'm sure Ree would say I still am a lot of times." He reaches into his coat and hands her a canteen covered with a cloth bag.

She accepts with a raised brow, curious and suspicious. In her grasp, she feels light padding under the cloth.

"The cold can confuse people. You might be thirstier than you realize."

She almost rolls her eyes at him for telling her something so basic. At least he didn't seem to imply naivete on her part. She twists the cap open and takes a whiff. "Alcohol?"

"That's the cloth. Won it from drunk, and nothing I do seems to get rid of the smell. Now, what was I talking about?"

"Those who break the rules are trash."

"Ah, right, your comment."

She hides her grimace by taking a drink.

"The reason she jumped you is because you were right, in a way. You see, the group your sister hired are mercenaries."

She closes the canteen and hands it back to him. The news doesn't surprise her as much as it should.

He takes the container from her and opens it. "Cyclops is the group's leader."

Weiss' gaze drifts to where the woman once stood. "If they came from the leader, the flares would act as a direct order from a superior officer." From that perspective, she can understand why the woman might have some reservations. Her coming here would go against her leader's wishes.

"Maybe. The fact that she didn't know about them until we told them to her blurs the line a lot. It wouldn't matter much in the end."

"She'd come here anyway." She combs her finger through her hair. "Guilt?" She didn't want to deal with the snow melting on her head. The cold makes getting wet a bad circumstance.

He shakes his head. "Her reason for coming is the same reason she stayed in town, and it is why she hesitates."

It dawns on her that the woman stayed behind in town for a reason. The woman's presence in the bar could be for business instead of pleasure. "Duty?" Didn't Winter stress to her the value of keeping an ear to the ground?

He nods. "Loyalty." He takes a drink before closing the canteen and returning it under his coat. "She has to choose between loyalty as a subordinate and loyalty as a friend."

"What would you choose?"

He smiles. "Those who abandon their comrades are worse than trash." The confidence in his words reflects in his every being.

In that moment, she believes with all her being that he will go through hell and back for those he called comrade. All the sudden, the cold didn't bite as deep. She turns her sight away from mesmerizing purple speckled with crimson. "You're sure she'll come back for us?"

"She's reckless, but not stupid. Whatever got cyclops to light three flares, she can't take on alone."

With her question about the woman's role answered, a new question nags in her head. Weiss keeps her eyes to the ground as she asks, "Why'd you take me?"

"Would you have stayed if insisted?"

"Would it matter if I tried to come if you didn't want me to?" Weiss turns her head to him when his hand settles her on her shoulder.

"I don't want you to come."

Her eyes widen, but she doesn't pull away because of his smile. "Why?"

He raises his brow but keeps his smile. "Are you sure you want me to list off why you're unfit to take part in this mission?"

She huffs. "That's not what I'm asking. I want to hear why you'd bring me along. As you have said, my skill set is," she pauses, "less than perfect for this situation."

The corners of his lips twitch up. "Less than perfect?"

Her head drops.

He chuckles. "Don't be too hard on yourself."

A soft thud against hard earth announces the feline woman's drop from a nearby tree. "I can't see how her words are too hard on herself. If anything-"

"Since you're here," she interrupts and crosses her arms, "we should go."

"Alright," he sighs and turns to the woman. "Where should we start?"

The woman shakes her head. "There's not a trace of them near here." She points to back behind them. "They must have split away from the road much earlier than we did. If you want to find where they entered, we must go to around the forest for at least a mile."

Naruto rubs his chin. "And the alternative?"

"If we move through the forest heading west, we should come across their trail."

Weiss turns to him, "Would it be a stupid question to ask why this is a choice? Wouldn't the second option get us to them faster?"

He replies, "It isn't stupid." before the woman can, to Weiss' relief.

"And?"

"I'm sure you can make a good guess." He turns his head to the woman "Between the two of us, going straight through shouldn't be too much of a risk."

The woman sighs and relaxes. "Good. I suppose having you around will help."

"I'm sure my nose is better than yours."

"That's not what I'm talking about," her lips curl into a grin, "nightlight."

He crosses his arms. "Ha. Ha. Ha."

The woman places her hand on her hip and shrugs. "It'll help even the odds when it comes to vision."

"It also discards stealth."

"Care to fill me in," Weiss turns to him and asks, "Nightlight?"

The woman doubles over in laughter. "You didn't tell her?" She points to him. "What's the matter?" she catches her breath. "Embarrassed of your Semblance?"

Weiss's brows rise. "Semblance?"

The woman points to herself. "Another thing I've got that's better than, nightlight's."

"You mean turning into a Faunus?"

He speaks up as the woman growls. "Her ability enhances her natural attributes. Better senses, intuition, strength, speed, reflex, and regeneration."

"I'm not a Faunus."

"Your turn, firecracker."

"Excuse me?"

The woman scoffs. "You think we're standing here having dick measuring contest? Tell us what you're good for so we can know what to do with you."

"I create Glyphs. The best description I've heard of its abilities is it is an attractive or repulsive surface."

"No summoning?"

Weiss hesitates at the woman's question. "How did you-"

"The group I belong to are not amateurs. We've done our research before accepting your sister's request."

"Besides," he chimes in, "it's not as if there was much effort in keeping the ability a secret. Anything else worth mentioning?" He motions to the woman. "She already knows my standard gear."

"Almost nothing," the woman whispers.

He continues, ignoring the jab. "What about you? Any surprises in that bag of yours?"

Weiss reaches behind her and pulls a small vial. "Dust. Most of the time, I make use of it through Myrtenaster," she taps the hilt of her blade.

The woman turns to Naruto. "Which suggests she can use it in its raw form."

Weiss's eyes drop to the vial of red Dust in her hand then to the male blonde. Her eyes roam his worn cloak, noting the small patchwork on its shoulder. She tosses the vial to him, perhaps foolhardy, risking an explosion.

He abates her worries when he catches it without incident. "Thanks?"

Weiss raises a brow. "You know how to use that, don't you?"

"Never tried, but it shouldn't be a problem."

"Are you serious?" Weiss reaches in her bag on the small of her back. "Perhaps powdered Burn Dust isn't the best for a beginner."

The woman interrupts, "As much as I'd like to waste more time," and points to the forest, "I'll go on ahead. The both of you can meet up with me when you're done accessorizing."

Weiss watches the woman leap into the forest and disappear into the shadows.

"Don't mind her," Naruto tells her. "She was way more upbeat and cheery the last time we met. A few teases and jabs are routine, but she wasn't this hostile."

"Of course."

"She's a loyal friend, and it might just be the situation getting to her."

"I get it. To be honest, I'm surprised I'm not more affected considering..." Weiss couldn't find it in herself to finish the thought. "Perhaps it hasn't sunk in yet." She's read something like that could happen on a mission. Perhaps she didn't believe her sister was in that forest.

"Maybe you're braver than you believe you are."

She shakes her head. "I'm not ready." Her hand grips the pommel of her rapier. "I haven't even attended Beacon yet." Her fingers relax, and she places her hand over her chest. "Winter would scold me for taking this foolish risk." Her eyes close. The rhythm against her palm beats faster than normal, but its tempo is not erratic. A tiny reluctance makes itself known as she opens her eyes.

His smile kills it with a lightness below her heart. "She's precious to you." He extends his arm and offers his hand. "If staying behind is what it means to be wise, be happy to live as a fool."

The tempo in her chest doubles, but not out of fear, or worry, or doubt. Her right hand grasps his, her left free for her weapon, and they run into the forest.

A possible answer to her earlier question makes itself clear after a few steps. A vast amount of branches and needle-shaped leaves above them hide the moon. The tall, wide trunks surrounding them blocks the faint lights of the town behind them. His hand she holds become a faint outline before they fade to nothing as the world around her turns black.

A root snags her foot and almost falls forward if not for his support. The decision to cut through the forest is a risk because they might miss the trail in the darkness. Faunus have excellent night vision, akin to the animals associated with them. The eyes of many nocturnal glowing of a special reflective layer in the back of their eyeballs. This helps them in semidarkness, but absolute darkness means there's nothing to reflect.

The luminous purple orbs staring back at her in the empty void defies this rationale. His eyes turn away from her and the nothingness returns.

From the darkness came light.

An ethereal glow envelops her companion bathing forest around them with a golden hue.

She could almost convince herself his light blankets them with warmth if not of the lack of melt in the snow.

For a moment, she remembers fairytales of enchanted forests. The words that come out of her mouth, "Nightlight?" are far less magical, "Your Semblance is glowing?"

"Yeah. When I first learned everyone got special abilities, I wanted to find out if I had one too. I thought I'd get something awesome. Explosions would be my choice. Came across this on accident while meditating in a cave. At first, I didn't think this would be it, but since everyone calls it my Semblance, I guess this is it."

"Sorry." She'd turn her head away if she didn't need to keep an eye on their path. "I understand I can be," she pauses, "difficult. Insulting your Semblance isn't proper." People often note Semblances represents a piece of their character. Thus, some people are touchy about their Semblance.

He chuckles. "Don't be. It is rather lame. Most Faunus can get by with the light from their Scroll. A flashlight would make this redundant."

"I like it." The imagined warmth swells in her. "I mean, it is better than a flashlight. It's almost as bright as predawn."

He comes to a stop.

"You noticed it too?" The woman's voice comes from behind her.

He shrugs. "A clean cut is hard not to spot."

It takes Weiss a few seconds to find what they're talking about. To their right, at shoulder level is a branch cut short.

"If they kept making obvious clues along the way, we cut our travel time in half."

The woman glances at Weiss for a second. "She might not last long with that pace."

"Don't underestimate her. It'll take a toll on her stamina, but give her a breather when we get there and she'll be fine."

"Your call. I'm not risking the rescue on her."

"She understands what she's getting herself into."

The woman shrugs and then disappears.

A tug on Weiss' hand reminds her she is still holding his hand. When she lets go, his grip remains firm. "This forest is dense, and it is not impossible to loose sight of me after a few feet."

With reluctance, Weiss tightens her grasp.

Weiss makes the effort of watching where he steps so she can mimic his path. She has to admit to herself, without him as a guide, traversing through would be arduous. On reflex, she draws Myrtenaster and cuts down a branch before it smacks her face. She is not so fortunate with a stray branch that hits her right knee. She wonders if the sliver of Aura she lost is worth avoiding the minor cut.

The silence of the forest is eerie, unnatural. Their footsteps almost echo whenever they land on roots or stone. The snow isn't as deep on the forest floor, but they take their toll all the same. Another branch hits her though over her shoulder and doesn't cut fabric.

They come to a stop and the woman drops in. The two blondes nod to each other before the woman takes off again, and they continue their run.

It doesn't escape Weiss that they've slowed their pace. Every so often, she'll spot a broken branch here or there. A large tree leaning against another comes into view. The break on its trunk comes at eye level. More broken branches and trunks come into view until they reach a large clearing of felled trees.

Naruto pulls her to an almost ninety-degree turn away from the clearing. It takes her a moment to realize he has stopped his glow. The reduced number of trees allows moonlight, but not much else. She runs into more branches, the poor visibility making them difficult to dodge or cut.

He stops when the trees are farther apart and lets go of her hand. Before she can ask her question, a fleck of red against white catches her sight. Her feet follow him as he heads towards the spot.

A gargled moan steals her attention upwards. Her breath hitches as a man lays hanging on the branches. Red tinge the white cloth and gray steel as blood drips into the snow below. Like roses in a paper garden, red blooms through the snow.

A sharp whistle snaps her trance.

Naruto's second whistle ends just as the woman appears and leaps to the body. The woman drops from the tree with the man in her arms. A third whistle, not from Naruto, catches their attention. He and the woman share a glance then nod before heading towards the source.

Weiss stands unmoving for a moment. She wonders if she should feel guilty. Relief had sparked in her because the blood came from anyone else other than Winter. Would she be a bad person for fanning its flames? Would she be a bad sister if she killed that warmth building in her chest?

Weiss' body rushes after the pair, perhaps running away from her thoughts.

They come across a girl in pink. If Weiss was in a joking mood she might have commented on how much pink the girl had. The girl's hair, eyes, and dress were of various shades of the color. As it is, the color does little other than draw Weiss' attention to the gray gun in the girl's arms. The large gun would be more intimidating if the girl had the strength to carry it. As it was, the girl looked like she might collapse under her own weight.

The woman shifts the man in her arms over her shoulder and walks towards the girl and supports by the shoulder.

The girl leads them deeper into the forest until they come across the largest tree Weiss has seen. They walk around it until they come across two other women, both with white hair. Winter lays nestled between two large roots. The image would have been serene if not for the red gash down her right eye.

"Her wound is shallow if that eases your concern." The woman with short silver hair points to her eye patch with her mechanical arm. "She won't need one of these anytime soon." The woman's left eye is purple, a shade colder than Naruto's. Her black suit almost hides the blood staining it.

Naruto goes over to Winter and lifts her over his shoulder.

Weiss almost moves to help him but goes to the other white haired woman instead and offers her right hand.

"I can stand," the silver-haired woman says but allows Weiss to support her with her shoulder. The woman turns her head to Naruto. "While I'm glad not to end up as a popsicle, you being here means your system sucks. I told you, flares aren't reliable. You miss one flare and the meaning changes too much."

"We saw all three."

"And you still came?"

Both Naruto and the blonde woman nod.

"You're both idiots."

The ground rumbles.

"Dead idiots."

They run after the second quake.

The trees explode behind them. One almost crushes them if not for the blonde woman as she drops her friends and punches it away. It slams into a large, white horn atop a white helmet that contains a red glow. Behind it is a much larger, white, Y-shaped horn. Its six armored legs scuttle it forward.

Weiss pulls out Myrtenaster and swings it forward, creating a wall of icicles. The ice catches two of its legs. The blonde woman dashes forward and uppercuts the Grimm. A mechanical hand flies forward and grabs the woman back just as the pincers on its face clamps down. Weiss and the woman she's carrying would have flown forward if not for the Glyph beneath her feet. The mechanical hand lets go and the blonde lands in a roll, stopping a foot before them.

The blond woman turns to Naruto. "How in the world didn't we notice that? Its horns are taller than every tree out here!"

"Yeah." The silver-haired woman on her shoulder coughs, specks of blood spraying from her mouth. "Took us by surprise too. We better run while it's trapped. Its armor is too thick. We couldn't scratch it with everything we've had."

The ice cracks.

Weiss lets the woman stand on her own as Weiss reaches into her bag and pulls out more dust. She opens Myrtenaster's revolver-like mechanism held within the hilt on a hinge. Inside are various colors of Dust. Weiss replaces the half-empty vial and closes it. Her focus almost causes her to miss Naruto's command for them to run. She closes her eyes. The blonde woman's protest become inaudible. When Weiss opens her eyes, her blade is deep in the ground, and ice covers all the Grimm's legs.

Weiss' legs give out from under her. She almost doesn't feel the arms catching her.

When she opens her eyes she is face up in the snow, staring up at the broken moon. She hears people shouting, but the words sound like their underwater to her.

"...he is safe?"

She makes out bits and pieces, but most of it is guess work.

"...distraction..."

"...crazy..."

The voices must come from different people, but they all sound the same to her.

"...was that thing? I've never seen..."

"...out of here. The town..."

When she opens her eyes, she stares into concerned light-blue eyes. She wonders if she's staring at the mirror, but the crooked scar is too pink, too fresh to be hers. "Winter."

"Rest."

She obeys.

When she opens her eyes, she stares up at a wooden ceiling. Muffled voices come from the door.

"You what?!"

"...deal, right? Besides..."

"Owe you?! Are you forgetting that you almost got her killed?!"

"...sister... ...your boss..."

The shouting stops, but she can tell the discussion remains heated.

A part of her is curious. A larger part of her tells her to rest.

When she opens her eyes, she stares up at a wooden ceiling until blonde catches her periphery. "Naruto?"

Dressed in far too much orange, he smiles. "Are you okay? You should get more rest."

She shakes her head. "I feel like I've slept for a week."

"Almost right. It's been three."

"Three days." She raises her hand to eye level. "I can't believe it."

"Nope. Try weeks."

She jolts up from her bed. "Three weeks! That leaves me a day to get to Vale!"

"Relax. Your sister pulled some strings and got us a ride."

"What did you say?"

"Your sister got us a jet, I think. Didn't care much for the details. She said something about it being experimental."

"No. I mean, 'got _us_ a ride'. Don't tell me you conned her into letting you become my escort or bodyguard."

"Nah. Not interested in escort missions. We wouldn't get to chat much on the way if I was busy on security."

"Then why are-" Her eyes widen. "No way! You're attending Beacon!"

"Nice guess. Almost right on the nose. I knew you were smart! Told you before, didn't I? I already passed the academy, and I don't want to go through all that again." He points to himself. "You're looking at the future best teacher in Beacon!"

* * *

 **Next Chapter:** The First Step

* * *

Spoiler, he's not going to be a fully-fledged teacher. That would be unrealistic. He will be teaching (evil grin).

* * *

 **Author's Note:** Delays

Sorry about the delay. I had a sudden idea to make Naruto not have Aura to help balance things out, but I've changed my mind. That shouldn't be a spoiler because he has a Semblance. (There are ways to say he may not really have an Aura and he might not really have a Semblance, but that's something to worry about much later.)

* * *

 **Edits:** Pronouns

Reduced pronouns due to feedback.


	5. Chapter 4: The First Step

**Disclaimer** : I don't own RWBY or Naruto. RWBY is the property of Rooster Teeth Productions. Naruto is the property of and Masashi Kishimoto. Neither are my intellectual property. There is no financial gain made from this will I seek any. This is for entertainment purposes only.

* * *

 **Chapter 4:** The First Step

* * *

Naruto's eyes move up from the blade pointed at his throat to light-blue eyes.

Winter glares and snarls. "Why are you in my sister's room!"

He leans back in his chair and pretends to clean his ear with his pinky. "You shouldn't be so loud. Your sister needs her rest." He waves his hand to the bed in front of him though his eyes remain on Winter. "She has had three weeks, but she took a nasty hit from that giant bug."

The tip of her sword presses against the thin ethereal barrier protecting the side of his neck.

He raises his hand in surrender though the rest of his body can't hide his nonchalance. "I wanted to make sure she is fit enough to travel tomorrow. But seeing the number of guns here and the exit, I get the feeling you wouldn't have let her out if she so much had a sniffle."

The blade rattles in her grip. "She would not have gotten hurt if you didn't bring her into the forest," she growls in a low voice. "How did you get in here? There are two guards at every entrance. The Atlesian Knight's inside the inn have orders to shoot all unauthorized personnel."

"Kind of overkill, don't you think?"

"And yet it seems it isn't enough."

His shoulders tap the blade as he shrugs. "Yeah, the patrol rotations had holes in it. Don't worry about it too much, though. I'm too awesome to keep out."

She scoffs.

His gaze drops from Winter to the girl in bed in front of him. Weiss's body faces away from them. Despite the three layers of blankets covering her form, his mind's eye sees red. His gaze traces the scar from her shoulder to her hip. "I'm sorry."

Winter sighs and the sharp pressure against his neck vanishes. "Don't be." Her dagger clicks sheathed. "As much I'd want to lecture you on breaking and entering, I must give recognition where it is due. It's better for it to be a non-hostile to point out the imperfections in our security."

He chuckles. "I'm not apologizing for being awesome." His smile dims. "You were right. It was my call to bring Weiss along so she was my responsibility." His hand rises, and he looks at his palm as they close into a fist. "It has been a month, and I thought I had gotten used to my new limitations."

The wood beneath her feet creeks as she turns to face her sister. "It has been longer than a month, and I thought I had gotten used the thought of my sister becoming a Huntress."

He stands up and pats her on the shoulder, "She's your sister," before moving towards the door. "You'll never get used to it." He turns his head to her and gives her a thumbs up. "Don't worry too much. With me as her teacher, she'll be even more awesome!"

She shakes her head, the shadows on her face almost hides her small smile. "My sister will do fine without your... instruction." Her back straightens and dawn through the window reveals stern eyes but wet cheeks. "Plus, there is no guarantee Beacon will accept your application. Why don't you go to Atlas if you do not wish to enter as a student? You might not make the cut as a teacher, but I'm sure they would give you a nice position in their staff."

He leans against a drawer near the doorway. "Did you give a report of our conversation on this topic?"

"Of course, as I've taken the opportunity to approach you with Atlas' offer. Your response was relevant information. I included it along with your performance against a Grimm we've never encountered before."

"Then I've got good odds to get in."

"While destroying that Grimm is impressive, combat competence is not professorship's sole qualification."

He grins, "Me taking that down will help," and point his thumb to the door. "If your military is anything like every other I've known, you should go. There must be a mountain of paperwork waiting for you."

Her eyes narrow. "You expect me to leave you alone with my sister?"

He raises his brow.

She turns her head away.

He sighs. "Atlas and Vale are allies, right?"

"What does-"

"Then you don't need to worry. Can't make enemies with the allies of my future employer."

She turns to him with scrunched eyebrows before nodding. "Sure. I mean, of course."

He rolls his eyes and as she walks passed him. As her hand twists the doorknob, he tosses her a pink cloth from his coat's inner pocket. "It wouldn't do for the rows of guards outside to see tear tracks on the so-called 'Ice Queen'."

His ears almost don't catch her whisper, "Thank you," before the door clicks shut as he walks back to his seat.

"Your sister left. You can stop pretending to be asleep."

The girl in bed remains unmoving.

"I guess I made a mistake, and you are asleep." His smile widens. "Oh well, I guess this would be a good opportunity to draw on your face."

"You don't have a pen." The girl rises up and turns to face him.

"I'm good at improvising."

"What happened to giving me time to rest?"

"The extra guards also came with doctors and equipment for a small hospital. You should have been up and about three days ago if not a week ago. Also, our little talk was only a couple hours ago."

Her eyes drop to her lap, and her lips form a small smile. She whispers, "Winter," to herself.

"Not everything revolves around you. There's been a lot of monsters near town as of late. They're why you're still here. It is too risky for anyone to move out."

"Oh."

He chuckles. "You're somewhat right. Winter is overprotective, but she's also smart. The soldiers and robots are here to protect the town, but you're also in the safest building here."

She closes her eyes and takes a deep breath. "Right." Her eyes open and drift up to him. "So, is there a good reason why you're still here?"

"When I left after our talk, I expected you to get ready to head out. After I got my stuff together and found that you were still here I had to come get you. At least, you've already changed out of your pajamas."

"What's the big deal? If what you've told me is right, we've got time before our flight takes off."

"You plan to spend those three hours in bed?"

"No." She crosses her arms. "I had," her eyes shift to the corner of the room, "plans."

"Ah. You were hoping for spend some time with your sister."

Weiss' cheeks puff out, and she turns her head away.

"No luck with that I'm afraid. She'll be busy keeping this town safe and standing."

"By getting ink onto paper. I heard."

"Don't underestimate the power of paperwork. They're a chore, but sometimes they save more lives than moving an army."

Her eyes return to him with a raised brow. "I didn't expect something like that from you."

"Trust me, it'd be simpler if I could fix everything by punching it."

"Sounds like a fast way of making a lot of enemies."

"I've made great friends after exchanging fists."

"That, I don't find surprising."

He shrugs. "Let's stop wasting time and head out."

"Where? What for?"

"Does it matter? It'll be more interesting than staying in your room doing nothing."

She glances at the door behind him then sighs, "All right." She tosses layers covering her legs, "Give me a minute," and stands up.

"Why? You're already dressed."

She places her knuckles on her waist and glares at him.

"Fine." He stands and heads to the door. "Don't take too long. We're already late."

"Late?"

He says, "Don't forget to bring your sword," before he closes the door.

The click and clacks of guns pointed at him almost drown out Weiss' voice, "Late, for what?" behind the door.

He leans against the wall by the door and turns to the closest non-robot guard. "I'm surprised you guys didn't drop to the ground laughing when your boss came out."

The woman's helmet covered most of her face, but he spots the slight twitch at the corner of her lips.

"Was the pink too subtle? It wasn't my first choice, but the orange powder was too obvious."

His smile widens at the small snicker from the end of the hallway.

The guards along the hallway return to their positions when the doorknob to his right clicks open.

Weiss glances at the guards at every door before turning her attention to him. "Where are we going?"

"Let's make it a surprise." He pushes off the wall and gives the nearby guard a wink and a salute before heading to the stairs.

Before they reach the stairway, he turns right to the last door in the hallway and knocks. He ignores the raised brows of Weiss the and the man guarding the room and gives a louder knock.

The door swings open to reveal two females with frowns on their faces. "What?" snaps the woman with rabbit ears, crossing her arms over her unbuttoned shirt. Her companion remains silent but keeps her long, white, fluffy tail high in the air and her canine bared.

He glances at Weiss behind him, who has her face in palm, and the guard who is doing his best statue impersonation. "Sorry for interrupting your," he takes note of their lack of pants, "nap. I was hoping we could come in and exit through your window."

"What?" The three females surrounding him ask, while the other male stammers.

"Doesn't your room have a window? Sorry, I didn't scout the building out much before coming in so I assumed."

The tailed woman breaks out of her shock first. "Why?"

"Don't know. I guess I thought every room having a window was a reasonable assumption to make."

"No!" the rabbit woman interrupts. "Why do you want to exit through our window?" She peeks out the doorway and turns to the guard, tapping footing. "Aren't you supposed to protect us from crazy people?"

"Hey. Don't be mean. Firecracker can be emotional," his thumb points at Weiss, "but she's at least half sane."

Weiss grabs him by the shirt and yells, "Who are you calling half sane?"

He raises a brow. "The one who's making a scene and attracting attention from every guard on this floor?"

"I'm not the one who's asking random strangers if we can jump out their windows!"

"We're on the third floor. It's not that far of a drop."

"That's not the point!"

Before he can return the conversation back to the two women, he hears it. The rabbit woman also turns to the marching footsteps coming from the stairway.

He steps back and bows at waist height to the three females. "I'm sorry, but my life is on the line." In one motion, he tackles Weiss into a fireman's carry and pushes passed the two women into the room.

Weiss' yelling almost drowns out the Winter's voice barking orders from the stairway.

With dexterity and skill which his teachers would be proud of, he opens the window and leaps out onto the open road. The roll after he lands is less graceful, but he succeeds in keeping Weiss from the worst of it. He sets her down on her feet and asks, "Are you okay?"

"What are you doing you deranged delinquent!"

"Hey, if you want to deal with your angry sister, good luck with that. Me, I'd prefer living."

Weiss' eyes widen at the mention of Winter, and she turns her sight to the window they left from.

He takes off but keeps an eye on Weiss as she stands on the road looking back and forth between him and the inn.

Winter pops out of the window, and she and her sister stare at each other before Weiss runs after him.

He slows down until she catches up to him.

"You are so immature!" Her furrowed brow contrasts with the small smile on her lips. The mix of angry and amused makes for a weird expression.

"If I got her in orange, you wouldn't be able to run because of how hard you'd be laughing." He slows down until they are walking.

She snickers. "I doubt that."

He pouts. "I was hoping my first prank after a long while would get more of a reaction." He waves to a couple of men wheeling red and blue dust.

They nod to him as another man sweeping the sidewalk greets him, "Fox."

He resists the urge to correct the man and instead nods and greets him back, "pajama dancer."

The horned man's grumble brings a smile to his face. While his earlier statement isn't a lie, it didn't mean he didn't take part in other people's pranks.

Naruto's own smile widens when the man's frown give way to a small smile. He slows to a stop and knocks on the iron fence.

Weiss' eyes move from him to the structure behind him. "The orphanage?"

He knocks harder, but the gate opens with that simple act. "Guess they are expecting me." He enters and takes three steps into the small playground in front the brick building when he spots pink.

"Mr. Kitty!" The young child dives at him with her arms forward.

Naruto ignores the giggles of a passerby and lets the child tackle him. He pouts at Weiss' chuckle, but greets, "Princess!" with open arms. He exaggerates the little girl's impact by falling down into the thin layer of snow.

The girl's arms aren't long enough to wrap around him, but she does her best, tightening her hug.

He pats her on her pink beanie which hides her white rabbit ears. "How are you doing? Still taking everybody else's grass? You learn any new tricks? How are your friends?"

The girl pulls out from her hug and gives him the largest pout her little cheeks can make. "Parsley is not grass!"

"It tastes like grass."

"No, it doesn't. Grass tastes like dirt! More than spinach." She then makes a show of sticking out her tongue and shaking her head while complaining about spinach.

Not even his trained ears could decipher her words. He chuckles at the sound of Weiss' light laughter.

The small girl's head whips to Weiss with wide eyes before running behind him.

Weiss mirth withers at the sight.

He stands and steps aside, but the girl rushes behind his leg. "Come on, princess. She doesn't bite." His lips twitch upwards. "Well, she can't bite as hard you do, at least."

The girl pouts at him but stays behind him.

Weiss forces a small smile. "It's alright. I should go."

He kicks snow to Weiss' face before she can turn to the gate. Her sputter and the child's snicker sends chuckles out his throat. "You can both stop being silly." He smiles at Weiss, "Give me a second."

Weiss bites her lips and drops her gaze away, but remains where she stands.

He sighs as he turns and kneels to the child behind him.

The child's eyes glance at Weiss then stare up at him.

He offers the child his hand, and she grabs it with both her little hands covered by thick gloves. "A princess shouldn't be afraid of good knights."

The girl raises a brow, unconvinced. Somehow, he imagines Weiss shares the child's skepticism.

"Do you remember the fairytale you nagged me to read to you? The one with the fire breathing monster?" He jabs his thumb behind him. "She's in white, got a sword, and fought a monster larger than the orphanage." He grins as the child peeks at Weiss with curious eyes. "She also carried you back to your castle the last time you met."

He stands but keeps his hand in the child's grasp. Three steps later and they are in front of an uncertain Weiss. "What about it, white knight without armor? Wanna play with the princess?" He turns his gaze down. "Do you want to call your friends to join the fun?"

The child nods but says, "They're out. Jenny told them to buy food. They take forever getting food."

"Well, why don't you get them? It'll be more fun with more friends."

The child mulls his words over with her tongue out before nodding and skipping out the gate.

"Jenny?" asks Weiss.

"The old lady. It's not her name." His eyes stay with Weiss, but he spares a wave greeting another passerby outside. "Princess says she heard a few soldiers call her Looting Jenny when they visit. I'm sure she heard wrong but I don't care to ask."

Weiss glances at where the child was. "She's a rabbit Faunus, and she's not stupid. Maybe she's right?"

"Nah. She has worse hearing than you. Most the of the people here do."

Weiss's eyes dart to her before returning to him. "That's impossible. At least half of the Faunus I've seen have extra ears."

"Which is bad when you're around explosions all day."

"Explosions?"

"Mines."

"Oh." Weiss's brows furrow in thought. "But she's too young."

He shrugs. "From what little she remembers, her parents always brought her to their work."

"That's irresponsible."

"Her parents, or the business that lets employees bring their kids?"

"Both." Weiss' gaze drops. "Do you," she bites her lower lip, "Were they-"

The distant yells of children interrupt her words.

"Princess!" he says to the obvious leader of the group.

Said child jumps up and down getting powders of snow on the green outfit of the kid next to her. "I got Ao and Barf. Thistle is napping again. Can we play now?"

The tallest kid in deep blue whines, "My name is not barf. Zaffre doesn't even sound like barf. Just because you got named Awesome doesn't give you the right to call me barf."

Weiss turns to the child in pink. "Awesome," her lips quiver, holding back a snicker, "Princess, we'd love to stay." Her voice is unconvincing even to the child. Her light-blue eyes glare at him. "But don't we have something else we need to do?"

He raises his brow. "What?"

Weiss places her hands on her hips. "Are you telling me you brought me here to play kids games?"

"Yeah. It'll be fun!"

"You're serious."

The children beg, "Please! Please!" in unison.

He chuckles. "Are you going to say no after princess went to all the trouble of getting her friends?"

Weiss crosses her arms. "You're the one that told her to get them. I didn't promise anyone anything."

Naruto motions to the children continuing their repeated pleas. "How can you say no to that?"

Weiss turns away from them with an upturned nose with a hmph. Impressive when the trio is loud enough to give the few people walking by outside pause.

"It'll be a good warm up after your long nap. A game will be more fun than sitting in your bed all day. Unless..."

Weiss scoffs. "You can't goad me when you're being so obvious."

"Yeah, you're still recovering. There's nothing wrong with admitting you're not strong enough to win a children's game."

Weiss' growl is inaudible against the continuous begging of the four children around them.

"Come on kids. We don't need six to play. Let her get her rest. She's got a long day ahead of her, and the walk from the inn must have taken a lot out of her."

He grins as Weiss marches towards him and grabs the front of his coat.

"Calm down. I haven't said start yet." He beams at her glare. "You don't even know the rules."

Her glare sharpens but releases her grip and steps back.

He turns to each of the kids, "You guys wanna play Super Tag?"

Three cheers meet his words. The time he's spent with them tells him they don't care which game they play.

"Super Tag?" asks Weiss as she crosses her arms.

"We haven't hammered out all the rules but for now, it has three. Two teams." He pulls out an orange handkerchief and rips it in two with his teeth. "Each team gets a flag." He tosses Weiss half the torn cloth. "Touch any part of the enemy's flag and you switch sides."

"You're implying a fourth rule," Weiss says as she wraps the cloth around her left hand. "The team that gets everyone as a member wins."

"I'll be the first team, and the rest of you start as another team." The kids run to Weiss side. "We begin when I say, 'Start,' but you guys can prepare before then." He kneels down and places his hand on the ground, in the snow, mimicking a runner in the starting line.

Zaffre and Ao run and hide behind the wooden slide. 'Princess Awesome' stays jumping up and down beside Weiss. Weiss keeps her eyes on him as her left foot inches forward and her breathing evens.

He yells, "Start!" the second his eyes catch her left foot inch back. The orange cloth leaves his hand, wrapped around a handful of snow, and hits Awesome between the eyes.

Before Weiss can call him a cheat, Awesome grabs the falling cloth and whips it at Weiss.

Weiss dodges the attack and the follow up by inches before leaping backward.

Awesome doesn't chase after her and runs to Zaffre's hiding spot instead.

He watches Weiss' eyes dart from Awesome to the two children failing to hide and then to him. His lips form a half-smirk when she rushes towards him. He sidesteps her open palm and leaps away from her backhand.

She thrusts forward with her cloth wrapped hand again.

This time, he ducks low and sweeps her legs from under her before her hand can follow his sudden drop.

She lands on her back but is able to roll aside and back to a standing guard.

His hand motions for her to come at him.

She hesitates but charges at him.

He parries her arm by the elbow.

She twists to a full turn, keeping her arm extended, forcing him back.

He cranes his neck as she leaps over him, avoiding her hand as it swipes down.

Her feet touch the ground for a split second before she is once again twirling through the air.

Dodge, parry, backstep.

With each attack, her tempo increases.

Every so often, he attacks, varying their rhythm.

Pivot, swipe, thrust, swipe, backflip.

He strikes her back with an open palm.

She stumbles but recovers into a somersault.

He rushes her and hooks his foot with her leg.

Her hand swings down to his knee.

He pulls his leg.

She falls backward.

He kneels on her left arm.

She swings her right arm at him.

He catches her right palm.

She struggles against his grip. Her left fingers claw at the cloth at her palm, desperate to untie the cloth for extra reach. She curses the mere inches of distance between his leg and her palm she cannot close.

Giggles signal her defeat as an orange cloth lowers over her face.

He stands and gives a thumbs up to the trio of children in front of him. "Good job, princess." He steps back and shoos away their small audience outside the fence. "No need to pout. You did well for your first game." He offers his hand to Weiss.

"I'm not pouting," she huffs, but she accepts his hand and pulls herself up.

The girl in pink jumps between them and hops from foot to foot. "Another! Another! This time I'll be the narwhal and you be the pearl rubber."

The two other children sigh. "I already told you, we surrendered because it's time to eat," says Zaffre

Ao nods, "Yeah. You don't wanna be late, do you? The old bat's gonna throw a fit, ya know."

Naruto pats her on her pink beanie. "Sorry, princess. The knight and I need to go. We've got an hour of monster slaying before we leave."

The trio whines together, but the two drag Amazing towards the building. Zaffre waves goodbye while the girl in pink wrestles against their arms.

Weiss raises a brow at him. "Are you sure it's okay to leave them like that?"

"You forget how princess was when you first met? Once she burns through all her energy, she'll nap in the middle of the meal."

"Why do I get the feeling you mean that in the literal sense?"

He smiles. "Let's get to the gate before your sister finishes her random inspection." He walks out the orphanage's grounds.

Her eyes widen, and her lips turn upwards before her brows furrow. "How can you be sure she's there right now?" Her footsteps follow behind his. "Doesn't that negate the purpose of it being random?"

"Your sister isn't great at being unpredictable. At worst, my guess isn't off by much, and we'll be there before her." He nods to a woman and chuckles when her child gives him a thumbs up.

"Why does everyone here seem to know you?"

"Most don't. The person I've spent the most time with in this town is the orphanage matron. We've met up twice since you came here, and twice before. I've had more words with her than anyone else here, and she doesn't talk much."

"How'd you get so famous?"

"Do you want their answer or my answer?"

"Why not both?"

"They'd tell you it's cause I've killed monsters."

"And your answer?"

"No idea."

Weiss groans.

"Okay, that's not quite true. My," he glances up, "old friends," and blinks, "gave me advice from time to time. If I were to guess, me hanging around the right people spread my name," he grimaces, "or my alias around."

"You're referring to 'Fox'."

"It's not mine, and I don't need it. I like my own name, and I have enough titles, and I don't need another." Blue and white catches his eye.

Weiss calls out, "Winter!" as she catches sight of her sister.

Winter's eyes widen then narrow at the sight of Naruto. She paces towards them with a stern expression. "Weiss," she nods then turns to Naruto with a glare, "You! Do you have any idea how hard it was to remove your little joke?"

Naruto shrugs. "Unless you only had water, it shouldn't have taken too long."

Weiss' poker face impresses him. Then again, she might not know how to feel.

His prankster pride imagines there's a giggling Weiss under the surface. "As fun as it'll be to chat, we've got a city wall to defend."

Winter shakes her head. "The Grimm pulled back a short while ago. The plan has changed to take advantage of the opportunity. My sister's flight will come in much earlier than the previous schedule. I planned to call my sister after my inspection." Her eyes move to Weiss. "Sister, your luggage has already flown ahead." She pauses and glances at him. "Sister, there might be items in the inn worth taking along."

Weiss's brows furrow, and her lips part, but her mouth closes, and she nods. She turns to the road and takes a step. Her head turns, and she looks back at Winter before she returns her sight to the road and leaves.

Naruto watches Weiss' figure disappears into a corner. His eyes drift to Winter. "Subtle."

"We don't have much time. I'd prefer not to waste it with your sarcasm."

"Okay. What do you want to chat about?"

"I wish for you to explain to me your motives, and why you sound confident in your acceptance into the academy."

"Thank you for your help with that."

"Would you care to elaborate on how my report assists you in this regard?"

"I said it will help more than killing the bug. Also, there's no guarantee with any gamble, unless you rig the game. It doesn't matter if I get hired. I'm sure I can find alternatives if I need to. As a for motives, my time as Hokage forced some tough lessons into me."

"I'm not familiar with the term."

"Hokage? It means I am," he glances down to his missing right arm, "I was the leader of my village. Politics isn't my thing though a few friends told me otherwise."

"I disagree with their assessment."

"Point is, I understand how leaders make decisions. I'm confident I got good odds if my read on your initial offer is right."

"While the offer is generous, it doesn't imply confidence in your skills as an educator."

"There's a saying I heard while I was with cyclops' group."

"The mercenaries."

"It goes, 'Keep your companions near but your foes nearer,' or something. Of course, I'd add keeping your sight on unknowns."

"You believe you'll get into a place of position because they want to keep an eye on you?"

"They won't place me anywhere important."

"The professors will take offense to your claim of their occupation as unimportant."

"At best, I'll be an assistant. It's a good excuse to keep me under the eye of at least one other staff and keep me busy when they can't. If they make me a professor, I'll quit and tell your sister to find another school. They should value the next generation."

"And what of your claim of becoming the best teacher?"

"I'll teach no matter what they decide."

"Which brings us back to the question earlier. What possible reason do you have to desire a career in education."

"I don't plan to be a teacher forever. It just so happens to be my best choice at the moment."

"I don't follow your train of thought."

"Do you remember what I told you when I refused your offer?"

"You responded that you found repeating your experience as a student undesirable."

"It was one of the reasons."

"But not the sole reason." Her voice confident in her answer.

He nods. "I want to protect people. It's the purpose of my strength. Every second I would spend as a student, is a second I'm not out here helping people."

"How is being a teacher in Beacon different to being a student in Atlas in that regard?"

"I knew you'd be trouble when you arrived in this town." He holds up a hand before Winter can argue. "Those monsters outside, they're attracted to negative emotion." He sighs. "I'm still having trouble wrapping my head around what that might mean." He points to her. "Your name proceeds you."

"You believe our presence breeds hostility which attracts the Grimm."

"I trust my sources when they tell me it did."

Winter grunts but doesn't object.

"Which is why it was a surprise to hear that the news of your defeat in the forest resulted in more monster attacks. It's so obvious looking back." He chuckles. "It's funny. I lectured your sister on the power of symbols, and yet I forgot something so basic."

Winter's Scroll buzzes. She gives it a glance. "Weiss will be back soon. Expediency would be nice."

"Alright. I guess I'm saying it was stupid of me to forget."

"Forget?"

"You are also a symbol. The news of two warriors downed by a monster made the town uneasy. It's the same for the Kingdoms. I've heard the four Kingdoms are old and how towns like this come and go. It's stupid of me not to put it together earlier. The Kingdom's longevity make them symbols. They're beacons of hope."

He spots Weiss far in the distance, walking towards them but slowed down by a child. The young child held her by the hand chatting and laughing.

"I want to protect my new found friends by fighting alongside them. But I made many new friends from different places, and I can't be everywhere at once. Sometimes the largest impact a warrior can make is far away from the front lines."

He waves at the approaching pair.

Naruto would have missed Weiss' subtle wave if not for his excellent eyesight.

There was no way for a half blind man to miss the rabbit-eared child waving her pink beanie in the air.

His eyes return to Winter, and he smiles. "Becoming a teacher sounds like a good first step."

* * *

 **Next Chapter:** The Emerald Forest

* * *

We might be skipping a bit forward.

* * *

 **Author's Note:** Next Update

Depending on how hectic my December will be, the next chapter might come out on December's end or in the middle of January.


	6. Chapter 5: The Emerald Forest (55:100)

**Disclaimer** : I don't own RWBY or Naruto. RWBY is the property of Rooster Teeth Productions. Naruto is the property of and Masashi Kishimoto. Neither are my intellectual property. There is no financial gain made from this will I seek any. This is for entertainment purposes only.

* * *

 **Chapter 5:** Emerald

* * *

Ozpin closes his eyes and takes a deep breath.

Glynda beside him isn't faring any better. Her grip tightens so hard against her riding crop, he hears it creak.

He opens his eyes to the source of their exasperation.

The young blonde Faunus' smile stretches the thick, jagged whisker marks on his face.

Glynda snaps first, "Are you insane!?"

Ozpin has to give it to the kid. Of all the people that got under Glynda's skin, few have gotten her this riled up. It's quite an accomplishment considering the people they know. He doubts she realizes her Semblance is pushing outward at everything in the room.

Glynda paces forward and whips her weapon down at the table's glass surface. "Why would we hire you? You broke into this office, destroyed the ballroom, and scared students! We also suspect you're the culprit who vandalized the Beacon Academy Statue."

The young man scratches the back of his head. "Yeah, the paint job on the guys and girl wasn't good enough to make for the fact that it was an easy target." His rough voice contrasts against his youth. "I should have gone with my first thought and painted the tower instead. That prank would still be on a much smaller scale than the Hokage Monument, but it is tall enough. Most people won't even see my work on the statue."

"You set off fireworks from its base! Everyone saw your handiwork!"

Ozpin speaks up before Glynda explodes further. "You're taking this," he glances at Glynda, "well." It wouldn't do to have her send everything in the office flying by accident. His mug would not survive it.

The Faunus shrugs. "I've gotten used to it. Almost every woman I've spent more than five minutes with here seems to get angry for some reason."

"I can make a guess," growls Glynda through gritted teeth.

Ozpin interrupts, "You don't seem concerned about how this might affect your employment." He leans forward and steeples his fingers. "You haven't even introduced yourself."

"I didn't see the point. Even if the message you received mentions my name less than twice, Naruto is too cool a name to forget. As for my job, if it doesn't work out, I can find other things to do."

Ozpin leans back in his chair, and his fingers intertwine. "Yet you are confident that I will accept you into my school."

"You haven't kicked me out of this room or called the cops."

Glynda crosses her arms, "You are in the presence of two experienced Huntsmen. Even if you are foolish enough to believe you can escape us, you'd be insane to take on every Huntsman in the area."

"You haven't tried to restrain me either."

Ozpin's eyes narrow at the young man in front of them.

It's easy to differentiate cockiness from confidence. It's harder to see if that confidence comes from wisdom or foolishness.

Every few seconds, he catches the Faunus' glowing, slitted eyes dart to a window or the elevator. Glynda's unintentional use of her Semblance is weaker than a breeze, but the boy must be aware of it. And yet, not once has his fanged grin faltered to anything less than a smile.

"Glynda." Ozpin almost hears the blonde woman's head whip towards him. "With the ballroom," he waves his hand, "unavailable, the students will camp outside. While I'm sure the night won't be an issue to our future Huntsmen and Huntresses, best not tempt fate. If you wouldn't mind supervising, Glynda."

Glynda remains silent for a second before sighing. "Maybe it's for the best." Her eyes linger on their guest as she heads to the elevator before glancing at him. "I'm sure many of them are still awake, passing rumors among each other."

Ozpin reaches for his mug though his eyes remain on the young man. It's possible he is overestimating the Faunus by giving him so much focus. His ears almost miss the elevator's ring, signaling Glynda's departure. He takes a sip, hoping the drink would ease his nerves, but he grimaces when the liquid touches his tongue.

"Cold?" asks the boy, Naruto. The Faunus offers his surviving hand.

Ozpin raises a brow but hands over his mug in curiosity.

Naruto grasps it from below. The air around the mug shimmers for three seconds before he hands it back.

The warmth of the handle in his fingers and the wisp of steam from the drink says it all. "Thank you." He takes a large gulp from the mug. They had a lot of talking to do. Best to enjoy the warmth while he still can. "Semblance?"

"Nah." Naruto relaxes back into his chair. "I had some of that red Dust left from the firecracker. It's not like I'm going to see any real action anytime soon unless you'll make this more interesting for me. Even then, there's a chance I'll lose it before I get to use it. Since I'll be staying here for a while, I might as well put it to use saying sorry for the lame prank."

Ozpin wonders if sending Glynda away was a wise decision.

"You have absolute certainty in your hypothesis that we will take you as an assistant to keep an eye on you."

Naruto raises a brow, "Oh? Winter added that tidbit in her report?" His lips stretch to split his face.

"The messages sent for your recommendation include statements from many sources. Why does it seem that you enjoy getting under the skin of every woman you meet?"

His grin becomes a small smile. "Nostalgia." Naruto's crimson eyes linger at the window before shifting around the room. "It's been a long time," he whispers. "Besides, I don't limit my," the edge of his lips twitches up, "fun to women. I could just be lucky," his brows furrow, "or unlucky."

"Your luck aside, I will acknowledge you as a fighter." The boy has a lot of skill if testimonies of the fight with the armored Grimm are true.

"But?"

"I am the headmaster. It is my responsibility to prepare my students for the dangers that await them. Skill is not enough, not even for an assistant."

Naruto's posture shifts. His smile and relaxed demeanor remain, but his glowing eyes lock to Ozpin's. "I guess it's time to get down to business. Ask and I'll answer."

"Do you believe an interview will make up for the lack of a resume?"

"You have plenty to read about me. They're better than any resume I can write for myself."

"Those are not all accolades. Plenty of them are," Ozpin sips his drink, "unflattering."

"Better honest criticisms than empty praise. Again, better than any resume."

Ozpin hides a small smile with the mug before his expression becomes serious. "None were able to be close enough for the details of the battle itself."

"Eh? Why would you want to hear about that? The fight wasn't that interesting."

Ozpin raises a brow. "The fast, giant, armored, flying Grimm made binding threads tougher than most alloys. Eyewitnesses described the creature with awe and terror."

"I was on its back for most of it so I didn't deal with any of that sticky stuff. Don't get me wrong. It wasn't easy, but I don't much to say. I made a hole through its armor then carved as deep as I could. The hardest part was staying on for the ride."

"I'm surprised that you would paint the battle as rather mundane."

"I guess if I were younger, all that flying around might have been cool. Again, it wasn't easy. The flesh under the armor was also tough. Sure it broke every knife I had, but once I got deep enough, it stopped moving and died. The fall was the most dangerous part, and that was more dangerous to the guys below than it was to me."

Ozpin tries to find any sign that the blonde's nonchalance is false. When he is unable to find any, he continues. "So tell me, when you fought the Grimm, why did you bring Weiss Schnee? Inexperienced and involved, why didn't you keep her safe, in the town? Why risk her life?"

For the first time since they entered the room, Naruto's smile fades. "I made a mistake." His gaze drifts down to his sole hand gripping his knees. "If I can do it all over again," the Faunus closes his eyes and takes a breath. His eyes open, and his red, slitted irises stare straight into Ozpin's. "I would protect her better."

Ozpin straightens in his chair, his gaze locks with the boy's determined eyes. "You don't believe bringing her along was a mistake."

"She deserved to be there for her sister."

Ozpin rises from his chair and grips his cane. "As a teacher, even as a mere faculty of this school, it will be your duty to protect my students."

"Yes, but if that is all it meant, I'd be a bodyguard instead. It's a teacher duty to ensure they'll be strong enough to protect themselves."

"That requires they live long enough to learn."

The Faunus nods. "I will admit bringing her along was dangerous, but I wouldn't call it a mistake."

"Ignoring your failings doesn't make them go away." Ozpin surprises himself with the lack of bite in his own voice.

"I'm not running away from my failures. Yes, I failed to protect her. It is not even that I am far past my peak. Despite my new limitations, I could have done so many things better. I understand all that. Trust me, I do. I've made more mistakes than I can remember. My decision bringing Weiss to her sister is not one of them. Not in my heart."

Ozpin doesn't reply, but his grip tightens, his brows furrow, and his lips thin to a line.

"Her lack of experience and personal involvement to the mission are risks, I agree. But they are the same reasons why I brought her along. The real world and training are different. Don't get me wrong. Weiss isn't as naive to the death and dangers of the real world as Winter wishes her sister was. But it was still good for her to be on a real mission before she enters into the life for good."

"Somehow, I doubt that providing her with hands-on experience was your main impetus."

"Yeah, it's kinda weak, but it was a real reason."

"And the other is her personal involvement."

The Faunus pauses. His gaze drifts at a distance, with a small smile. "Her eyes." The corners of his lips twitch up. "You should have seen her, demanding to come with me on the mere chance that her sister was in grave danger. She wanted to protect someone precious to her, and for that brief moment, I believed she could take on the world."

It takes a second for Ozpin to become aware of the small smile on his own face.

The serious atmosphere vanishes with a sheepish smile. "Or at least, survive anything that's not bad enough to threaten the town with a half-made wall. It's also not as if I was sending her on her own. Ree is pretty tough, and I'm me."

He can't stop the small chuckle that leaves his throat as he returns to his seat. "Well, you've at least proven capable of giving a good speech. One hopes that means you'll be a capable lecturer as well."

The blonde gives a nervous chuckle and scratches his whisker-marked cheek. Traces of Aura protect skin from the sharp nail. "Here's hoping I'm a better teacher than I was an academy student."

The edge of Ozpin's lips twitches upwards. He recalls a few recounted accounts he had read prior. "That does bring up an important question. Why did you want to teach at my school? You've already made clear your disinterest in becoming a student. Do you believe becoming an educator would be easier?"

The Faunus lets out a sigh as his shoulders slump. "I'll admit, a tiny part of me hoped to avoid most of the boring stuff."

Ozpin doesn't know whether to chuckle at or reprimand the young man's childish pout. "Why not pick a different profession?" He thinks back to the blonde's earlier words. "While helping Ms. Schnee become a better Huntress is admirable, you can do so through other means. You don't need to join Beacon's staff to provide guidance and training."

"Sure. I can also become a student and I could help her as a classmate. Somehow, I get the feeling it'd be much less of a headache."

Ozpin consumes the last of his drink, grateful that it is still warm. "This isn't about the girl."

"Winter already told you, didn't she?"

"Her report suggests you hope your future actions in Beacon will ripple outward."

"It's the best thing I can do for my new friends."

Ozpin pushes his tinted glasses up. The momentary glint hiding the second instance his eyes narrow at the man.

The reports paint the mercenary group as associates of the blonde. If Winter's recounting is accurate, they blonde may have more 'friends' out there.

"While I appreciate the sentiment, you might end up disappointed. Even if you make a splash here, the waves will thin with distance. Your friends in Atlas might not even notice any difference."

"There'll be a difference. They may not notice it. Heck, I may not be able to, but there will be a difference."

"And what makes you so certain your actions in Vale can reach those in Solitas?"

"Aside from the fact that a guy is already doing it?"

"Would you care to share?"

"Is this a trick question? I'm sure someone in your position is aware of the recent string of robberies in Vale."

"Roman Torchwick."

"Sure, he's not making a positive impact, but it is an impact. His spree has drained a lot of Dust from here, enough that Dust prices are going up. Almost every other thing is getting more expensive as well. I still don't understand much of this, but that tells me almost everything relates to Dust. It's bad enough that it is attracting a lot of attention."

Ozpin's hunches forward. His elbows rest on the table with hands intertwined up in front of him, covering the lower half of his face. He makes no attempt to hide his focus on the man in front of him.

The Faunus continues, "I wouldn't call them all vultures like Granny O. does, but a few of them are for sure. Although, it doesn't matter much. I mean, it's good for Vale to get access to the stuff from outside even if it's at the higher cost. Prices would be much steeper without them. But the move of even the worst of them to here means less for those up North. That's less stuff for defense and survival. Right now, it's an inconvenience. A few constructions delayed, minor changes in prices, and so forth aren't much. But if the robberies continue," the man grimaces. "Some of the smaller towns are already near their limits. There are already talks of packing up and moving back to the bigger towns or the Kingdom itself. That's a lot of people becoming refugees, and that will have an impact of its own that will reach quite far."

Ozpin nods. "You've made your point quite clear." He sighs. "Let's end this charade. You're hired."

The man stands and offers his hand. "Great to hear. I was about to head out myself. Got something I need to take care of."

"We'll talk about your employment tomorrow. Send me your contacts, and I'll call you when we have something more than a job title to give you." Ozpin's hands remain in front of him.

The man raises a brow but makes no comment of Ozpin's refusal to shake hands. "Are you talking about those devices everyone has been carrying around?"

Ozpin hesitates. "You don't have a Scroll?"

He shrugs. "Not enough cash for it."

"I recommend you get one as soon as you are able to afford it. You will find it is a near necessity. Until then, I expect here you at six in the afternoon."

"Sure," he says as he moves towards the elevator.

"That will be outside the door, not having broken into my office as second time, Mr. Uzumaki."

Naruto lets out a nervous chuckle. "Got it, boss."

The elevator opens with a ping and Naruto steps inside.

Before the doors close, Naruto adds, "Don't keep me waiting too long. I'll get bored."

When the doors ping close, Ozpin drops his head into his hands and rubs away the migraine blooming in his skull.

He takes a deep breath. With the sudden silence, the clockwork of gears under his desk echo in his ears. He exhales.

His expression becomes serious as he ponders Beacon's newest member.

One Grimm defeated an Atlas Specialist with a skilled mercenary team. It was disquieting, to say the least, but not unheard of. It does serve to highlight the person who defeated it as dangerous.

But to Ozpin, the Faunus' skill in combat isn't the most alarming aspect to consider.

It is uncommon for warriors trained outside the four Academies to surpass Huntsmen. It is far rarer for any warrior, Huntsman or not, to be so cognizant of the many currents of politics.

Ozpin mind drifts to his closed Scroll.

On their own, none of the individual reports say much. Together, they allude to dangerous connections. The mercenary group is the most obvious and yet somehow among the least worrying.

Ozpin sighs.

He might be giving the boy too much credit and is looking too deep into the blonde's actions. The confidence might be nothing more than false bravado or ignorance of fault. Every presumed connection noted in the Scroll wasn't concrete. For example, a woman called "lieutenant-general" gets a few highlights. Yet, if not for those notes the passing mention wouldn't raise any flags otherwise.

He shakes his head.

Either way, the best course of action was to keep him under a watchful eye. It bothers him that this is the exact result the boy predicted.

"It looks like things are shaping up to be an interesting year."

* * *

Naruto's hands clench and unclench as he stares at the elevator doors. His sharp nails press against the invisible the barrier protecting his palm. He almost regrets not exiting the tower through the windows. The elevator stops, and he leaps out before the door can open all the way.

The world blurs around him at his pace, and the air rushes past his ears. Even with his senses dulled by speed, Beacon's size and architecture shine through. It makes Konoha's academy seem small and simple in comparison. It is too fancy for him, but it also brings reassurance to him. They spent a lot of resources on this school.

The sight of green halts him in his tracks. With a grin, he claps the back of the man's long green jacket. "I didn't expect cyclops to send the perverted librarian."

"Would you stop calling her that? Also, the perverted librarian? Aren't nicknames supposed to be shorter? Besides, I'm not even a librarian. Heck, my cover was as a bookstore owner, so you're wrong on all accounts."

Naruto ruffles the man's green hair, avoiding his red goggles, with a snicker. "All that, and you didn't even try to deny the pervert part. Besides, it was cyclops that insisted on me not calling you guys by your real names."

The man slaps his arm away with a huff. "We have aliases."

"Which you haven't told me yet."

"Call me L."

"You got that off one of your comic books, didn't you? What, got tired of Mule?"

"Shut up, Fox."

"So, did she send you because of your ability, or was this out of convenience?"

"L" raises his brow. "Wow, getting to the point already? You must be in a hurry."

"I wouldn't have asked for a ride otherwise."

"I wouldn't call the words painted on a statue as 'asking'. You're lucky your signal flare was visible through that mess of fireworks. Heck, you're lucky we got someone here to report your handiwork to her. If you're in this much of a hurry, you're lucky that someone was me. We try to keep someone at every kingdom, but we're a small group. For all you knew, there wasn't anyone in Vale who can read your code at all."

Naruto scoffs. "For as careful as cyclops is, she can't hide everything from me. It was obvious she'd keep at least one of you guys in Vale," he frowns, "the city." Why did the city and the kingdom share a name? "Plus, she wasn't subtle about her intention to keep an eye on me."

"Did I ever tell you how scary you can be?"

Naruto chuckles. "Yeah, the glowing red eyes are extra cool during the night aren't they?"

"Not that. I mean. You've read us so well."

"You're exaggerating."

"We're supposed to handle reconnaissance and assassinations. And yet, you're telling me our boss isn't careful enough around you."

"Give yourselves some credit. You guys are great at taking and hiding from your enemies. All you guys need is a little practice dealing with allies who are as good or better than you are at that."

"You'll have to admit, it's not common for allies to spy on each other to that extent."

"Maybe not where you're from."

L raises a brow at that.

"It's a long story, and I don't have much time to waste."

"You're quite chatty for a man in a hurry."

"I'm not in that much of a rush to not have time for a friend. This will be last time we'll see each other again for a long time after all."

"How do you-?"

"Call it a hunch." Naruto winks.

"Where do you want me to send you? I can't promise to get you to an exact location, but can get you close."

"You know what kind of place I need."

"No specific place in mind?"

"Keep me close to the school if you can."

"But not too close, right? Got it. Will you be okay without your knife collection?"

"None of the ones I can afford will be of much help me right now."

"Why don't we get you a weapon first, before I drop you off in the middle of nowhere?"

"It can't be too far if you're taking me there. You said so yourself, your range isn't infinite."

"Naruto."

"I'll be fine."

"Don't worry about the cost. You can pay me back later."

"Unless you can buy us a time machine, I'll have to make do with what I've got."

"It won't take long."

"I appreciate the thought, but it's not necessary. Don't worry too much. In case you forgot, I kicked your guys' asses with much less."

"That doesn't count. Not every one of us was there. Plus, you got lucky and took us by surprise."

"Any other time, it'd be fun to set you straight on that. Today, I'm already behind schedule."

"Fine. You always were a stubborn brat. Close your eyes."

Naruto groans but follows the command. "I'm older than you are."

"Act like a brat, look like a brat, you are a brat." He pauses. "Hey, Naruto."

Naruto resists the urge to peek with an eye. "Yeah?"

"Thanks."

Before he can even reply, he's no longer in Beacon.

The sudden shift in the wind and the rustling leaves tell him this before he opens eyes. He raises a brow at the sudden drop beyond the toe of his boots. He wonders if "L" intended his current precarious position on the cliff.

Memories surge forth from the ocean of green beneath him. He can almost pretend he is standing atop of Hokage-iwa. His mind adds rooftops and landmarks between the trees with ease.

The bittersweet illusion doesn't last. None of the trees here existed in Hi no Kuni. The earth doesn't settle the same way beneath his feet as the rock. Is the cliff side even the right material to be able to carve into? He shakes his head and whispers, "Shinobi endure."

He steps forward.

Gravity pulls him down. For a moment, he recalls how he fell into this world. His jaw tightens, and his fist tightens at his side.

He lets the wind wipe away the wetness from his eyes.

With a simple twist, he slams into the earth on one knee and a fist to the earth. The impact creates a small crater and stresses barrier protecting his body.

Inefficient.

But it felt great.

The euphoria lasts a split second before the chakra inside of him threatens to erupt forth.

Naruto takes a deep breath and pulls the chakra back to his core. His brows furrow. The pulsing power within him offers a much more resistance to his efforts than he expected.

"I should have taken care of this sooner."

His eyes snap to the rustling from his right.

The glowing red dots behind the leaves shine brighter in the darkness of night.

He ponders if he should use his newfound ability to shed light on his watchers.

"You should leave."

His words fall on deaf ears as four muscular wolf-like creatures step out into the moonlight.

Naruto sighs. "I don't want to judge your skills. You haven't gotten the chance to show them so you might surprise me. But what I've seen so far doesn't count to your favor."

He might as well be talking to a wall as none of the four stop their slow advance towards him. Once they are a few feet of him, they sprint into a lunge.

A simple hop to the left dodges the closest's claws and fangs. His own arm swipes forward and plucks an exposed bone spike from its back. He stabs into his attacker's neck then throws the spike into the next closest beast. The two quick motions finish before he or the creature touches the ground.

The remaining two don't even have time to realize the death of their companions as they too lunge at him. He repeats his earlier performance but the drops of chakra he allows himself pulses. The bone spike flies out of his hand too fast. It misses the monster's head and tears its arm off.

He watches the creature howl in pain before it scurries away from him. "I'm out of shape."

His attempts to pull his chakra back is failing. Without control, it is too risky to use chakra for strength and speed. He gazes up at the closest tree with a pout.

It is a shame. He could avoid confrontation if he can stay off the ground. Plus, tree hopping is more fun than walking. He considers it for another second when his chakra fluctuates again.

Naruto groans. "I guess I'm walking." Before he takes his first step, he pulls again on his chakra. It's a struggle, but he succeeds.

Then he glows.

He bites back a string of curses as he loses all possibility of stealth. It takes him half a second of trying to dim the light his body is creating before his chakra pushes back.

He screams out the next string of curses that come to mind until the words lose all their meaning.

"So either a run through a monster infested forest with a neon sign over my head or a bomb on my chest."

Growls answer his rant as large, dark, bear-like beasts with bone white mask step into his light.

"I'm not in the mood. Leave!"

They rush towards him.

Naruto lets out a frustrated roar and leaps at the closest one. He overshoots and his backhanded claw rips the beast in half instead of knocking it away. Small wisps leave his body.

His next leap undershoots and forces him to block a swipe with his arm. He ducks under the monster's follow up, and he drives his hand into its throat.

Naruto leaps over a low sweep of claws from behind. He lands foot first into the creature's back, left of the spikes. He gives one of the bony protrusions a strong tug but his chakra doesn't cooperate. With a growl, he bites into the creature's shoulder for grip as he thrusts his claw into its side. It takes him three attempts before his strength spikes again. His arm lodges deep through dark flesh.

He spits out a chunk of evaporating monster meat. "You're not even good food."

A quick mule kick knocks away an enemy behind him before it can complete its clumsy attack. The force sends the beast through seven trees. It pushes itself back up and takes a step before it collapses dead.

The remaining two monsters don't hesitate as they lumber towards Naruto.

He'd almost mistake their stupidity for bravery. Past experience with these creatures tells him the former is far too common in their kind.

One punch sends one creature flying into the other and through more trees. Neither stands back up.

A quick internal check confirms the fight didn't even drain enough chakra to notice. The thin, sparkling vapors of energy escaping his body takes more, but he can't be sure. With a breath, he reigns his charka and the thin, luminescent trails flicker away.

It serves as another confirmation that he can't solve this by fighting or training. This fight used about as much chakra that he will risk at this state.

He gazes down at his body and raises a brow at his lack of color despite the light he is emitting. Everything else around him has color, although with a yellow tint.

Naruto hopes he can find a way to reverse the effect. He is confident in his ability to sneak through if the light shined on him but not everything else instead. Orange isn't that far off from bright yellow, and he was a great prank master in his previous outfit.

He takes another breath to pull back his chakra before taking off in a sprint.

There are a few snarls and growls at a distance, and he hopes his pace is enough to avoid more unnecessary fights. At least the forest isn't as dense as those around Konohagakure no Sato. Naruto leaps over a root and ducks under a branch but otherwise encounters no real obstacles.

A hiss comes from his right. Instinct allows him to react and speed up before the two headed snake catches full sight of him. He leaps before the black half shoots forward with its many fangs. The white half follows up the moment he lands. A sudden pulse of chakra exaggerates his leap and launches him forward, fast.

He lands feet first against the trunk of the tree. The shimmer around him tells him his invisible protection has met its limit.

Naruto drops to the ground and rolls with the impact. Small nicks from the brush at the base of the tree confirm the loss. He runs, unwilling to risk the creature finding him.

Naruto doesn't stop until he spots a cliff wall. He turns left the moment he hears a shriek to his right. It takes him five seconds of running beside the cliff to spot a hole in the wall. He stops in front of the entrance and considers his options.

The simple images painted in red beside it puts him on edge. If something does occupy the cave, he can make a guess on its nature. The scorpion along the side stick figures doesn't leave much room for interpretation.

His gaze drifts to the forest behind him before dropping down to himself. There isn't have enough time to search the forest for a better alternative.

He steps into the cave, his light serving him better than a torch. "At least I don't have to deal with the smoke." So far, his newfound ability hasn't been the most beneficial to him. He'll take whatever positives he can get.

The warmth in the cave compared to the night air outside is a small comfort for Naruto. It also confirms the cave houses another creature. That his light reaches far into the cave and that he can see the giant scorpion makes that evidence moot.

"Can we talk about this?" He doesn't know why he asks the question. None of these creatures he has encountered has shown enough intelligence for conversation.

It charges at him.

Naruto leaps over its white claws, twisting mid-air to avoid its golden stinger. He leaps from the bone-like plates on its back and goes past its tail and lands behind the creature. Its claws thrash at the walls as its legs skitter on the ground. In the confines of the cave, the creature struggles to turn around.

Naruto takes advantage of the situation and lets a few drops of chakra escape his hold. He punches it's softer, rear exoskeleton exposed to him. With luck, the fluctuation occurs on the first strike and tears the tail in half, almost. The tougher, white exoskeleton keeps the nonfunctional appendage dangling.

With a shriek, the giant scorpion rushes away from him and breaks through the small entrance. The small quake causes the top of the cave to collapse on the one exit.

He's sure can dig himself out later, or squeeze through the thin gap in the rocks.

For now, he'll have to take care of his little problem.

* * *

 **Author's Notes:** Change

Previously, I stated I thought this chapter should have come out by January. It's the end of March today.

Yeah, sorry about that.

Let me talk about the chapter above first.

I thought with the release of Volume 4 of RWBY that my productivity here would rise. Instead, I've been forced to do some rebuilding. For example, that scene I wrote with Ozpin, not the original idea. But the more I watched Volume 4, the more it became clear that the Ozpin in my head was far too different to the RWBY Ozpin as he is currently presented.

Secondly, there have been some concerns of me nerfing Naruto. I totally understand. Unfortunately, Naruto is far too OP when dumped into the RWBY universe. If you've seen the final Naruto vs Sasuke fight, you'll see both of them at their lowest point by the end of it. And they were still very strong.

Please forgive my language but I feel the need to make this very clear.

Naruto, with mere scraps of chakra left, punched Sasuke fucking two stories, minimum, into a fucking stone wall!

In comparison, Penny stopping a truck was shown in the show to be considered as an impressive feat of strength, or at least a noteworthy one.

I'm sorry, but the gap, even if we were to pick a much earlier version of Naruto, is far far too wide.

I hope this chapter has shown that despite Naruto being nerfed, he's still very strong by RWBY standards. Even with the severe restrictions I've placed on him, nothing in The Emerald Forest posed a threat to him, at all. I hope my writing was able to convey this idea even to those who will not read this author's note.

With that said, I personally don't care much for Naruto's power. What I liked about Naruto was his character, or more specifically, the character he grows into.

I also do think that a lot of people don't give the RWBY characters enough credit. But I've ranted on too much on this author's note already and I still have other things I need to say. Maybe next time.

As for the future of this fic:

The more I wrote, the more it became obvious to me that I really need to do some work on the previous chapters. However, I've never been comfortable doing a rewrite, mostly because I tend to dislike it whenever other authors do it, even when the end result is a better fic.

So the game plan will be this, I will be posting new chapters that will be sort of 'flashback chapters'. However, after a week or so, I will remove that chapter and integrate them into the previous chapters.

I hope this method will allow old readers the satisfaction of getting new content without putting this on hiatus or need to add an author's note telling readers to go back to read 'the new and improved chapter'.

Thank you very much to everyone who took the time to read what I've written.


End file.
